The Outsiders
by Malletmann
Summary: Following the successful suicide mission, the crew of the Normandy recieve a message from the Alliance; a secret outpost at the edge of the galaxy has observed evidence of a new alien race.
1. Chapter 1

My first attempt at fan fiction; I prefer original work. Critique is requested. Mass Effect (c) Bioware Warhammer 40k (c) Games Workshop

The Outsiders

* * *

><p>Just after the Suicide Mission<p>

Commander Shepard looked out the Normandy's main viewport at the planet below. Eta Ro III was a garden world on the edge of the galaxy, beyond space claimed by either the Citadel or the Terminus systems. "Looks like a nice enough place from up here," Joker, the ship's pilot, said. "Of course, it isn't slated for colonization, so there are probably man-eating dinosaurs or poisonous food, something like that."

A holographic circular icon appeared on the console before them. "The survey teams reported no major environmental hazards," EDI, the ship's AI, stated. "The Alliance's science station has operated without incident for four years. It is only the planet's extreme isolation that has prevented colonization."

"I don't buy it," Joker responded, "There are plenty of people who'd like to get out away from everything, especially on a world like this. I mean, it's practically paradise, there has to be some dark secret."

"We'll find out when we get down there," Shepard said. He turned to the ships CIC. "Joker, you have the bridge. Don't scratch the paint."

The team assembled in the main launch bay. They had all physically recovered from the high-risk mission through the Omega-4 relay, which had ended in remarkable success. Now, they were an elite unit capable of any mission, and dedicated to one purpose.

The Reapers were an ancient race of machine ships, who upheld a galactic cycle on extinction. Every time sentient life rose to the point of galactic influence using the Mass Relays and the Citadel, the Reapers would awaken from their eon-long hibernation and purge the galaxy. Their reasons were their own, and they had decided it was once again time.

Commander Shepard had learned of this, hunting down the rogue alien agent Saren Arterius. Since then, he had dedicated all of his energy to stopping their genocidal agenda. When the Citadel Council, the ruling body of the peaceful interstellar community, failed to produce the resources he needed, Cerberus, a shadowy organization dedicated to the advancement of the human race, offered to help him. Despite his reservations concerning the operations of Cerberus, Shepard realized he had no choice. With Cerberus' aid, he had led this team to take out the Collectors, pawns of the Reapers. Now, they were here at the edge of the galaxy to investigate a possible new ally.

Miranda Lawson, the senior Cerberus operative aboard the Normandy, stepped forward. "Cerberus intel doesn't have much on the Eta Ro III installation. The Alliance has kept this secret impressively well. The briefing mentioned something about encounters with an unknown alien race?"

"Admiral Hackett didn't say much over the comm," Shepard responded. "I'm not sure if he was concerned about the security of the transmission, or if he didn't know himself. Dr. Marchesini on the surface will know more."

"Sounds like a nice, quiet mission for once," Garrus Vakarian, the Turian marksman said. "Of course, they never turn out that way, but one can hope."

The shuttle touched down at the Alliance installation, a complex consisting of a dozen modular pre-fab structures. Soldiers of the Alliance stood around the perimeter, as though they were expecting an attack at any moment. As they disembarked, a group of armed LOKI mechs approached, escorting an Alliance officer and a scientist. "Commander Shepard, it is good that you are here. I am Dr. Marchesini," the scientist said. "This is Cpt. Arnold Church."

The captain saluted. "Commander Shepard. I've heard about your service on Elysium and during the Geth attack on the Citadel. It's an honor."

"What's the situation here?" Shepard asked.

"We've observed several vessels at the edge of the system, their power signature and profiles unknown," Dr. Marchesini explained. "We were about to attempt to make contact with them when the Geth arrived."

"Were you attacked? How did you hold out?" Shepard asked.

"We repelled the first attack, but I don't think it was an actual assault," Cpt. Church responded. "Felt more like a probe."

"There's more." Dr. Marchesini led them to a display. "A few hours ago, we detected a geth dropship incoming. 30 kilometers out, it was hit by ground-based fire of unknown origin. We believe it may be our unknown aliens."

*******  
>The Mako sped through the jungle, its engines roaring. Swerving around larger areas of vegetation, Commander Shepard still maintained a fairly straight course to the coordinates Dr. Marchesini gave him. "I never understood why you always push your vehicles to nearly unsafe velocities," the Quarian engineer Tali'Zorah vas Normandy said from the back seat.<p>

"Must be a human thing," Garrus responded. Shepard only smirked and shifted into the next gear.

They arrived at the site of the crashed Geth ship. According to the intel from Captain Church, it had been shot down by fire of unknown origin, and there was a good chance it was these unknown aliens.

Shepard brought the Mako to a stop next to the burnt wreck. They disembarked; Shepard and Garrus scanned the perimeter with their weapon scopes. A score of Geth bipedal platforms lay charred and scattered all over the clearing. Debris from several larger Armature platforms was also visible, though they had been completely blown apart. There were no active signatures.

Tali kneeled down next to a comparatively undamaged, but very dead, Geth. She began to examine it with her omnitool. "Based on these readings, I'd say the primary source of damage was heat, although there was a significant kinetic force accompanying it. The round was much hotter than what our weapons are capable of. If I had to guess, I'd say a plasma weapon."

"The Geth possess weapons that make use of plasma. Cerberus recovered a shotgun that created plasma induction on impact," Garrus said.

"It's possible," Tali responded. She began to examine the armature wreckage. "This was done by a mass accelerator weapon. A very powerful mass accelerator weapon. Bigger than a Mako's gun, at least. Some of these have scorch marks that indicate explosives, probably rockets."

"Look at this," Shepard said, examining a depression in the ground. It was a four-toed footprint, larger and heavier than any humanoid and too regular. "This is too big to be made by any race I'm familiar with, even krogan."

"I found similiar ones, but much smaller," Garrus replied. "I'm guessing that was made by some sort of machine."

"Whoever did this, they hit hard. Doesn't look like the Geth stood a chance. I don't see any other bodies," Shepard said.

"You're right. Whoever did this managed to shoot down a Geth dropship, then slaughter its compliment without sustaining a single casualty. Damn, that's one effective operation," Garrus responded.

"I've gathered all the data I can," Tali said after investigating the downed dropship. "I can analyze it at the-"

"Shepard, this is Dr. Marchesini! The Geth are back, and attacking in force! We can't..." The transmission cut off.

"Everyone! We're heading back to base!" Shepard ordered, and they piled back into the Mako. It spun about and accelerated back the way it came.

A pair of red lights, vertically aligned, shone out from the foliage surrounding the crash site. Other pairs appeared beside it, before they disappeared back into the jungle.


	2. Chapter 2

The Outsiders

Chapter 2

* * *

><p>The Colossus stood up, arching its head and expelled a crackling bolt of energy. Zaeed ducked under a supply crate as it arced just over his head. "Damn, this is Helios Prime all over again."<p>

Behind him, the asari justicar Samara and the krogan Urdnot Grunt offered him cover as he tried to set up a shot with one of the base's rocket launchers. Samara rose up from her cover to lay down a line of suppressing fire, giving Zaeed the opportunity to hit the Colossus while its weapon was recharging. The bounty hunter stood up and, taking careful aim fired the rocket off.

The missile flew on a perfect arch, heading right for the massive quadrupedal war machine. The Colossus turned its head, and for a brief moment, the projectile shone a bright cherry red before exploding.

Zaeed cursed as the Colossus sent a stream of autofire at his position, nearly taking his head off. "Thing's got a bloody active defense system! It lasered my shot down!"

"Pull back," Samara said in her stoic manner. She shimmered for a moment, before sending a wave of energy the same azure as her skin crashing into an advancing squad of geth, launching them into the wall behind them. Grunt fired off a few bursts from his assault rifle to make sure they stayed down.

The Colossus paused its fire, and Zaeed took the opportunity to fall back. Samara activated her radio. "This is Samara to any Normandy crewmembers. We are pinned down at the north gate. Please respond."

* * *

><p>Miranda Lawson picked up the signal. "This is Miranda. I'm trapped with Dr. Marchesini in the command center." She ducked as an explosion tore through the wall in front of her, sending shrapnel her direction. "Hold on; we'll try to get a message to the Normandy."<p>

"We'll try to hold them off...Colossus...more arriving..." the rest of the transmission was lost to white noise.

"Dammit, they're jamming us! We won't be able to contact Shepard or the Normandy. We're on our own until Shepard gets back." She looked around at the room's inhabitants. Along with Dr. Marchesini, Captain Church was holding off the eastern entrance with a squad of Alliance soldiers. Jacob Taylor, a fellow Cerberus operative, held the back entrance with the help of the drell assassin Thane Krios.

There was another blast, and a squad of geth shock troopers advanced through the new hole in the back wall. Miranda sent several rounds from her sidearm at them before ducking behind a partition. The shock troopers continued to advance, their hardened shields taking the blunt of the impact. Jacob and Thane provided her covering fire as she used her Omni tool to recalibrate her weapon.

The new modification would sheathe her handgun's rounds in an electric field, allowing them to penetrate the enemy's shields. One of the geth charged up the room, brandishing its plasma shotgun. Miranda sighted down her gun's barrel, and with augmented perception, fired one shot directly into the geth's main eye. Its shields failed, and its aim was temporarily disrupted; it fired at Miranda but went wide, blowing out a computer terminal behind her. Before it could get off another shot, Jacob blew out the back of its head with a shotgun blast.

Three more geth charged up from the wall breach. Thane sent a sniper round through the point trooper's chest, shorting out its shield. Jacob grabbed it with a biotic field, pulling it to him and shooting it point-blank. The remaining two sent a volley of fire into the room, forcing everyone's head down. Miranda used her Omni tool to direct an electromagnetic pulse at them.

They stuttered for a second, just enough time for a volley of fire to take them down. Just as she was about to relax, Miranda noticed a shimmering in the air out of the corner of her eye. It was the only warning she got.

She dodged out of the way just as the plasma wave blasted towards her. The wave clipped her side, tearing down her barrier and leaving a charred furrow in her upper arm. She tried to raise her gun, but an invisible arm knocked it from her grasp. Jacob charged the assailant, but it parried his biotic punch with mechanical strength, throwing him to the ground.

Miranda's genetically-enhanced eyes could make out the full silhouette of the geth stalker now. It raised its shotgun methodically towards her, before Thane's Omni blade appeared, piercing the seam of its armor and shorting out its entire body. The stalker's shroud field failed, and it slumped to the ground fully visible.

"Diversion. A clever tactic. I've made use of it myself," the reptillian alien said as he helped Miranda to her feet and administered a dose of medigel. "More of them will be coming."

* * *

><p>Garrus focused in on the line of red-armored geth on the ridge ahead. He depressed the firing stud on the control stick, and the Mako's machine gun opened up. The geth were cut down before they had a chance to fire, but there would be more.<p>

"Heads up, Garrus; we have a dropship at six o'clock!" Shepard called up from the steering wheel. Beside him, Tali had the dash in a death grip.

The dropship soared overhead, hurling pulses of energy down at the vehicle. Shepard swerved around the rugged terrain as it erupted, Tali swearing under her breath in quarian. Garrus tried to lock on to the spacecraft, but the Mako's main cannon was not meant as an anti-air weapon, and the machine gun didn't have enough firepower to be effective.

The dropship accelerated ahead, leaving them behind. The compound was in view, but the entrance was blocked by a Colossus and a platoon of geth bipedal troops. Garrus opened fire on the geth line, continuing even as he realized they were barreling directly towards it. "You know, this is crazy, right?" Garrus calmly inquired to the driver.

"Never stopped me before," Shepard responded.

The Colossus turned its head, zeroing in on the Mako. It held off firing until the last moment. Shepard tried to swerve, only succeeding in rolling the vehicle as the crackling energy spilled over it. They crashed through the compound's perimeter, catching fire as the Mako's systems were destroyed by the pulse.

Commander Shepard pulled Tali from the wreckage, while Garrus laid down covering fire. Shepard took stock of the battlefield while trying to hold the geth back. The complex was surrounded; the geth had deployed snipers and rocketeers around the complex, and the Colossus had blown open the north gate. A few squads of shock troopers had broken in, and there were half a dozen firefights throughout the base, the largest at the main structure.

"Hell of an entrance," Shepard heard Zaeed say as they made their way to the makeshift fortifications set up to protect the north entrance. "I might have tried to not crash, but what do I know?"

"Why didn't I bring the Cain?" Shepard asked to no one in particular.

"That would make an excellent epitaph," Zaeed muttered.


	3. Chapter 3

**Carlo Gesualdo**: I have an idea of how they arrived, but I am unsure if it will be explicitly revealed in the story.

I've noticed that my chapters have been getting shorter. This is likely because this was a period of high action, and I originally planned to have this part be in chapter 2. It doesn't really matter, I guess, but it may be a while until I post the next chapter, as it will likely be longer and not as frantic.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<p>

Chapter 3

Samara unleashed a wave of biotic energies on the advancing geth, tearing through their shields. They went down to fire from Grunt and Shepard, but more quickly stepped up to take their place.

Samara gunned them down in successive waves, ejecting a heatsink when her weapon begun to overheat. "Shepard, there's too many of them. We can't hold them off much longer; I'm on my last thermal clip."

As if to emphasize the point, Grunt's shotgun seized up. The weapon temporarily useless in his hands, he bellowed a warcry and charged the machines. Pulse rounds pinged off his armor as he hit the geth lines like a hammer. Wielding his gun like a massive cudgel, he set to work smashing through the enemy.

Shepard signaled Samara to cover him as he moved in to extract Grunt out of the killzone. The krogan was young and tank-born, and prone to be overcome with rage in a battle situation. While he was a deadly and effective fighter, this rage could prove to be a liability if, such as now, he got himself into a compromising situation.

Shepard laid down a spray of fire with his customized Revenant machine gun. The gun was larger than most humans could handle, and Shepard was only able to use it because he had been implated by his team member, the Salarian scientist Mordin Solus, with a strength-enhancing muscle weave. The rounds it fired were encased in dark energy, phasing through geth shields and warping their plating as the bullets tore through them.

Shepard called out to Grunt, "Get ahold of yourself! Get back to the line on the double!" The krogan roared as it bashed two geth heads together. "Did you hear me? I said move!"

The krogan finally responded, nodding and vaulting over a fallen wall. Shepard fired a last burst before following. As the geth massed to follow, Zaeed tossed an inferno grenade into their midst, bathing the area in blistering fire.

Shepard's options were running out. His grenade launcher didn't have the firepower to take out a Colossus, and the base wasn't equipped to deal with this massive an assault.

A geth dropship flew in overhead. The base's GARDIAN laser remained silent, which meant the geth were already in the base. The dropship hovered in front of the command center. When the soldiers inside began to fire up at it, the dropship blew the front of the building open, and unloaded an entire platoon of geth troops.

"Fall back! Reinforce the command center-" Shepard was interrupted as the air was suddenly split by what looked like a meteor. It collided with the dropship, blowing it in half. The burning wreckage fell straight down, burying the troops it had just delivered. The remaining geth radically began to change their deployment, taking up defensive positions within the base.

Shepard ejected a heatsink. "Change of plan. Attack! Grunt, Samara; Take point. Thane, Garrus; give us cover from back here. Tali, see if you can figure out where this jamming is coming from." They charged ahead, Shepard using his Revenant machine gun to mow down geth.

* * *

><p>Miranda struggled to her feet, trying to shrug off the effects of the blast. Once she got upright, she helped Jacob up. Thane's leg was pinned under a desk, and she had to use biotics to lift it off of him.<p>

The inside of the command center was completely destroyed. Dr. Marchesini was dead; imbedded with shrapnel. Aside herself, Jacob and Thane, she didn't see any other survivors. The Alliance soldiers were at the entrance when it had been bombed, and the other personnel weren't equipped with shields.

"We have to get to the shuttle," Miranda said as they recovered. "We can get a message to the Normandy if we fly out of jamming range."

Thane adjusted the scope of his rifle. "The geth will most likely have anti-air deployed around the base. Attempting to take off will be perilous."

"It's still better than waiting here for the geth to get us. We should try to find Shepard. He'll be able to lead a counterattack," Jacob said.

Taking a wedge formation, the team moved up to the hole the geth had blown in the east wall. A pair of geth troops were able to get off a couple of shots before Miranda and Jacob brought them down, using precise fire. Miranda was mildly confused, and quickly took stock of the situation.

The geth had redirected their fire into the surrounding jungle; sizzling bolts of electric blue retaliated. The unidentified fire burned through the geth line with little resistance. The shots were fired in synchronized, disciplined volleys, distinct from the usual quick bursts and supressive fire favored by Citadel races. The bolts burned much brighter and broader than the needle-thin streaks of lights that mass-effect based firearms produced. Upon impact, the bolts splashed over and bled through the geth's mass effect shields, boiling through their systems in one or two hits.

The Colossus lumbered over to the line, opening up with automatic fire. There was a roar, and a tan bipedal warmachine fell out of the sky, crushing a Geth Prime beneath its feet. It turned its cylindrical weapon arms towards the quadrupedal synthetic. There was a roar, and the air in front of the mech and around the Colossus flash-ignited. The Colossus seemed to slump as its casing melted of its frame. The machine collapsed into a pile of slag as the mech fired again.

Squads of bipedal troops in smooth tan armor and carrying long blocky weapons advanced out of the jungle, surrounding the base. A squad of the aliens approached Miranda and her team. Their faces were completely covered by their helmets, which were smooth and featureless save two vertically-positioned red lenses.

They raised their weapons, level with Miranda's eyes. "Don't move, gue'la," one of the aliens said. Miranda dropped her weapon and raised her hands.


	4. Chapter 4

The Outsiders

Chapter 4

The sun rose on the other side of the planet Eta Rho III. A formation of smooth, tan vehicles skimmed several meters above the ground of the savannah, cruising at a high speed. Native animals scattered as they approached, leaving waves in the grass they passed over.

Sentry drones tracked their approach as they neared the Rha'Yen Command Installation. They slowed down, passing between two automated ion cannon turrets and into the massive installation. They glided past rows of stationary Broadside, Crisis, and Hazard Battlesuits. Maintenance drones hovered around the mechanical suits, overseen by Earth Caste technicians. The formation continued, gliding past rows of drilling Fire Warriors.

A Crisis Battlesuit, flanked by a pair of shield drones, strode onto the field. A white-helmed fire warrior approached as the main hatch of the battlesuit opened. The pilot emerged, a large, broad shouldered alien. The white-helmeted soldier saluted, placing a close fist over his chest plate. "Shas'o Lynu'elan, we have completed our sudden strike on the synthetic foe. They were assaulting the gue'la outpost our pathfinder teams discovered in the jungles. We apprehended several personnel from the base."

"Good work, Shas'ui. Your cadre commander is to be commended. I assume the Water Caste wishes to conduct the interrogation?" the disembarking commander said.

"Indeed. Preparations are already under way. There is more though," the fire warrior hesitated. "Aun'el Cea'Cha is en route. There was some concern as to the safety of the facility, but the Commander Bork'Can is confident that the synthetics will pose no threat to the Ethereal."

The shas'o's countenance grew resolute. "We must prepare for the Ethereal's arrival. I want all deployments to give a full readiness report." He turned from the staging grounds, heading towards the base's command and communications center. "Withdraw our hunting cadres from any non-essential engagement zones and redeploy them to patrol the vicinity of the base as long as the Aun'el is present." He continued issuing orders as they went, while behind them, the skimmers landed.

The ride was smooth and uneventful. Miranda could almost relax, except for the alien weapons that had been just short of trained on her for the entire trip. She was clearly a prisoner, though she had no idea why the aliens were so antagonistic; as far as she knew, it was the geth, not humans, who had been the aggressors on this planet.

She had said nothing during the trip. The aliens had divided the crew of the Normandy amongst their vehicles. The only familiar faces in the craft were Thane and Jacob. Whether out of xenophobia or for some other reason, their captors didn't remove their helmets throughout the trip.

* * *

><p>They began to slow down; Miranda could feel the slight change in velocity. The craft had no windows in the crew compartment, so the only frame of reference she had was the tugging of momentum as they turned corners. Eventually, they came to a complete stop. There was a faint hiss as the airtight round hatch of the vehicle opened up and Miranda got her first view outside.<p>

They were in a large base, larger than the outpost the Alliance had held on this world. The architecture was round and smooth, all the color of sand. Alien soldiers drilled in an open area, lined with stationary military mechs. Large, visible weapon emplacements guarded the perimeter of the base, and Miranda wondered what other, hidden defenses this base might have.

The soldiers with them inside the vehicle prodded them out with their weapons. The Normandy team was lined up in front of an imposing alien figure. For the first time, Miranda got a good look at these people, since this one had no helmet. His skin was grey-blue, his face flat with a vertical "I"-shaped slit where his nose would be. He had small, amber eyes which peered out sharply from beneath a solid brow. The only hair he had was a topknot which hung down over his shoulder.

"Gue'la, your presence on this world is interfering with the Greater Good. We Tau will take any action necessary to ensure the Greater Good is served. You will be interrogated, and educated in the benefits of servitude to the Tau'va. When you have seen reason, you may earn your proper place within the ranks of the Tau Empire." The Tau commander made signal with his four-fingered hand, and the Tau soldiers began to herd the Normandy team to one of the alien structures.

Shas'el Bork'Cal, the Tau commander of the Rha'Yen base garrison, observed that the shas'o was most fervent in ensuring that all Tau forces on the planet were prepared for the Ethereal's eminent arrival. Bork'Cal did not blame him; all Tau served the Ethereals in the name of the Greater Good, for it was the Ethereals who led the Tau out of the dark time of Mont'au.

Bork'Cal addressed Lynu'Elan. "The gue'la prisoners have been interred. Interrogation by the Water Caste is under way. Base defenses are at full strength, and the shas'vre bodyguard has been prepared to receive the noble Ethereal." After the shas'o signaled his approval, she continued, "These prisoners are different from the gue'la I am familiar with. They did not resist capture. Their technology was unfamiliar. Most unusual, however, is that they fought openly with aliens of species I am unfamiliar with. This seems to break from their usual xenophobic dogma."

"We will discover the truth," Lynu'Elan said. "The gue'la build their empire on selfishness and arrogance. They hide the truth from their people, but they cannot hide it from us. Come, there is much yet to be done." They both turned to one of the screens inside the communications center.

* * *

><p>In another part of the Rha'Yen Command Installation, two figures sat in a sterile, white room. Flanking the only door stood two fire warriors. The first figure sat behind a desk located by the edge of the round room, directly beside the door. She was a thin Tau in a blue robe and wearing a wide-brimmed hat. A holographic display projected alien symbols at her, while a round camera drone hovered over her shoulder.<p>

"What is your name and rank?" she asked the other figure, seated in an elevated chair positioned in the center of the room.

"Commander John Shepard, of the Normandy."

The Tau interrogator pressed a few buttons on her console. "Within what battle group are you assigned, and under what admiral do you serve?"

Shepard hesitated a moment before saying, "I am currently operating independently, outside of the command of the Alliance."

"Alliance?" the interrogator turned her head to the side. "I am not aware of any such organization operating within the Ultima Segmentum." She remained silent a moment while looking something up on her readout. "No, our intelligence makes no mention of any alliance as an official organization. What is its relation to the Imperium?"

Now it was Shepard's turn to be confused. "I am not familiar with any Imperium within Citadel space. The Systems Alliance is a member of the Citadel; we have a seat on the Council."

The interrogator blinked. She remained silent for a few moments, tapping buttons on her console. The fire warriors continued to glare ominously with their lensed, faceless helmets. Finally, the interrogator looked at Shepard. "You have been most forthcoming for a member of your race. This is good. We have only one more question at this time. You have several members of your team who do not belong to your species within your team. Is this standard procedure for your vessels?"

"The Alliance does not have aliens serving onboard its vessels, however we do endeavor to establish peaceful relations with the other races in this galaxy," Shepard said, "We only want to establish peaceful contact with you. We are not responsible for the geth attack."

"Yes, we know." The interrogator said something in her language, and the fire warrior forcefully escorted Commander Shepard from the room.


	5. Chapter 5

Between work, school, and Skyrim, I've been busy.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders Chapter 5<p>

*******  
>The Rha'Yen Command Installation was full of activity. Save those fire warriors with indespensible duties, all Tau personel of all castes were assembled at the primary landing platform. Each one stood in formation, they awaited.<p>

A white shuttle descended from orbit, touching down gently and precisely on schedule. The fire warriors saluted as the vessel's main hatch opened. Four bodyguards emerged, followed by the Ethereal Aun'el Cea'cen. The Tau noble was clothed in fine robes and carried an ornate staff. He bore a serene countenance on his regal face. Surveying the compound, he finally turned to Shas'o Lynu'elan.

"Your work in this part of space is commendable, commander. The region meant for the Greater Good. Tell me, how does your pacification campaign fare?"

"My fire warriors have not failed in their task," the commander responded proudly. "Shortly after emerging from the Sho'kara, we encountered a hostile race of synthetic lifeforms. Their technology is unlike any we have encountered, but the Earth Caste has already begun work on unlocking any secrets it might contain. However, I would note that the synthetics do not seem to be a comparatively large threat to the Tau. Their combat prowess is inferior to that of the Imperium or the Be'gel. My fire warriors were able to defeat them with ease."

"Was there no attempt to reason with these machines?" the Ethereal questioned.

"The Water Caste made repeated attempts to extend diplomatic overtures to the machines. At every turn, all they received in response was strange messages of impending doom."

Aun'el Cea'cen nodded slowly. "And what of other races? Have you encountered anyone who may be open to the greater good?"

"I believe Por'el Doran may have the information here," the commander says as the water caste diplomat approaches.

The diplomat bowed. "Noble Ethereal, I bring the most interesting news. It seems we have encountered an isolated pocket of humans, not subjected to the dogmatic tyranny of the Imperium."

The aun'el smiled beneficently. "Tell me more. How open are they to the greater good?"

"They are fully open to the concept of cooperation with other species. In fact, we also had the fortune of making contact with several of their allies. The aliens here are not as belligerant as we are used to. This seems an ideal route of expansion, if I may be so bold to say."

Aun'el Cea'cen responded, "I wish to meet with these aliens. This is truly a bright day for the Tau Empire."  
>_<p>

Planet Korridon Hawking Eta Cluster

Captain Jularr'be looked down through the transparent window at the project below. The scientists bustled around a large apparatus consisting of an open cage-like structure covered with cables and readouts. As of now, the device was offline, but that was soon to change, he had been told.

Jularr'be turned to the nearest scientist, the project leader whose name he could not bother to remember. "So this is the future of the Hegemony, is it?" He tilted his head slightly to the right. "Tell me, exactly how will this device help us defeat the humans?"

The scientist replied, "This technology will not only place the batarian race above the humans, but at the top of the entire galaxy! We have only begun to consider the full extent of its applications. Our researchers were the first to confirm the existance of the otherspace, and we will be the first to begin exploring it."

"Otherspace?" Jularr'be shook his head. "What use could such a thing be? What benefit could exploration of another space be?"

"Through otherspace, we could send ships to places they couldn't get otherwise. We could bypass relay defenses, strike the enemy unawares. Not to mention applications of otherspace we have not yet even thought up. It is time for the first test to begin."

They both watched as the batarian science staff took their places. The room with the device was sealed off, with only a pair of fully suited technicians left inside as the device began to draw in massive ammounts of power.

A few moments past as the scientists rattled off a list of procedures. Eventually, Jularr'be noticed a change as the space within the cage of the device began to shimmer. All four of the batarian captain's eyes lit up. "Now things are starting to get interesting."

"No, no, this isn't right!" The scientist beside him noted. "Power levels are spiking rapidly. Shut it down!"

The technicians in the chamber began to work frantically as the shimmering grew into a ball of light, rapidly flashing colors that made Jularr'be's eyes hurt. He looked away, noticing the panicked state of the researchers. "Get this under control!"

"Shut down procedures not responding! Power levels continue to climb, despite no power being fed into the device! The power must be coming from the otherspace! Begin-"

The scientist was cut off as a shockwave erupted from the energy ball, smashing the lab. When Jularr'be looked up again, he noticed that the device had been completely destroyed, and in its place was a gaping hole to madness itself; a roiling maw beyond which was only intangible color and impossible geometry. A patch of the anarchy seemed to break off and move towards the rift.

Jularr'be thought quickly as the science team struggle to recover. He activated his comm to the orbiting ship. "Engage containment procedures! I repeat, engage-"

There was a roar, and Jularr'be forced himself to look back at the rift. The patch that had detached had coalesced into a terrible form; a vaguely bipedal monstrosity that seemed to be composed entirely of screaming faces. It began snatching up science team members, and as they shrieked, tore luminous energies from their eyes and devoured them.

Jularr'be pulled out his sidearm, a Carnifex hand cannon. "You won't get my soul!" he shouted as he opened fire. The monster regarded him for a moment, before he was consumed by eldritch fire, body and soul.

The batarian cruiser in orbit followed its directions. The site was obliterated, and the threat was, for the time being, eliminated.

* * *

><p>I have been reading reviews, and do take them into consideration. I have an idea where I want the story to go, and I think it will be interesting.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

My computer has been faltering in performance recently. I will continue to update, but I cannot say when next. Reviews improve the quality of my work, hopefully.

* * *

><p>Outsiders<p>

Chapter 6

The crew of the Normandy was assembled in a large meeting hall, spartan save for a few banners displaying alien symbols. They were unarmed, but not under as strict a guard as they had been before. Nevertheless, four large and impressive-looking aliens stood guard at the side of a raised dais, behind which stood a tall and regal figure. He wore lightly colored robes and carried an ornate staff.

Tali'Zorah vas Normandy had been born and raised on the quarian Migrant Fleet. Her race had created the geth for manual labor, but the geth developed an intelligence of their own. The quarians had attempted to deactivate them, and the resulting war drove her people into exile. Since then, they had been forced to live as refugees, traveling the galaxy in search of resources and safe havens.

These aliens, these Tau, had cut down an entire army of geth, and had done so with minimal casualties. Their weaponry was more powerful than anything available in Citadel space. She could not wait to get a closer look at their technology, if the Tau would let her.

After they had been apprehended by the Tau and brought back to their base, she had been separated from the rest of her team and interrogated by a Tau, a member of something called the Water Caste, she picked up. The interrogator had been polite and reserved, speaking as though they were simply having a casual conversation. At first, the Tau had seemed interested in the humans and her relationship with them; she got the idea that something confused them. Shortly after, though, the questions turned to her and her people. She had been careful what she said, but had tried to be open.

Now, they had all been gathered together here, and this figure was preparing to address them. "You have come to a world formally claimed by the Tau Empire. You bear armaments and perform surveillance. Yet I do not believe you are our enemies. You come here out of curiosity and approach with caution. You have demonstrated some wisdom in your actions, and I am willing to extend a hand of friendship." He planted his staff in front of him. "I am Aun'el Cea'cen of the Tau Ethereal Caste. In the name of the Greater Good, I ask you to join us in brotherhood."

Shepard stood up. "My name is Commander Shepard. As part of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel, I would wish to begin a formal diplomatic exchange between our peoples. With your permission, I will contact my superiors and arrange for a meeting at the Citadel, our center of government. We can then establish a treaty of friendship."

The aun'el nodded slowly. "This has been a most beneficial meeting. I will have the Air Caste prepare for the voyage." A Tau adjunct entered the room, and said something softly to the Ethereal in their language. "If you will excuse me, something requires my attention."

After he left the room, a Water Caste adjunct approached. "Your ship in orbit awaits your arrival. You may return to it presently, however please do not leave orbit. We will contact you shortly."

The aun'el moved to his reception area to receive the news.

"Your excellence, a few hours ago the Nicassar reported sensing a most troubling disturbance in the Warp. We do not know the origin of this event, but it could not be far. Do you believe these aliens had anything to do with it?"

Cea'cen considered for a moment. "The Air Caste detected no warp technology onboard their vessel. Addressing the issue at this time would be unwise. We shall wait and investigate this Citadel of the aliens; I predict this will be a most illuminating venture. In the meantime, have the Nicassar stay on alert. The Vash'aun'an is perilous." The aun'el turned to the door to his personal chambers. "You may depart now. I have many things to contemplate." The Water Caste adjunct bowed and left the room.

Shas'O Lynu'elan examined his Crisis armor suit. The suit had saved his life on multiple occasions during his lifelong campaign for the Tau Empire. Amongst the most advanced systems employed by the Tau, the Crisis suits were piloted by the most experienced veterans and commanders of the Tau Fire Caste. Highly maneuverable and capable of being outfitted with nearly every weapon system deployed by the Tau, it was feared by the enemies of the Greater Good.

The shas'o watched as the final touches were made in the suit's newest modifications. Worker drones began spraying a grey mist over the suit's previously sand-colored exterior. He nodded with pride as he turned to address the assembled Fire Warriors below from the elevated dais he and his armor stood upon.

"Brothers and sisters, you have served the Tau'va with honor and courage. The Ethereal could not be here to commend you in person, but he asked me to relay his blessing.

When the Vash'aun'an'Sho'Karra was first discovered, you were the first to brave its unknown tunnels. When the synthetics first struck, you stood firm, despite the fact we had no way of knowing how many were crashing down upon us. You held them off with plasma fire, pushing them back to make way for the Greater Good. Now, we stand on a field of victory, and a new, bright age awaits us."

Lynu'elan began to pace. "His excellency, Aun'el Cea'cen prepares to sojourn with the Water Caste to a great alien citadel to bring the light of the Tau'va to this galaxy. We shall stand vigil, for there are always those who cannot see reason, though we give them peace."

"Today, we stand guard on the newest ground dedicated to the forwarding of the Greater Good." The work on his Crisis suit was finished. The standard Tau scheme had been painted over; the suit now stood ash-grey with scarlet highlights. Lynu'elan raised his fist to his chest. "Fire Warriors of the Clee'san sept, I salute you!" The assembled warriors silently responded in unison, their faces somber but resolute.


	7. Chapter 7

Igfry: I hope this is long enough for you. ;)

Albericus: The Niccassar are a psychic client race of the Tau.

Undead3: If the Imperials were in a serious ME crossover, they would probably try to kill everyone. That being said, if you haven't already, I recommend reading Hammerhand and Angels of the Storm by Colonel-Mustard1990. They were a major inspiration for me.

If you want, I can move this to the bottom.

* * *

><p>Outsiders<p>

Chapter 7

Engineer Gabriella Daniels considered herself a tolerant woman. There were those who would say her membership in Cerberus proved otherwise, but she joined Cerberus to fight the Collectors, not support some human-supremacist agenda. She had no inherent qualms with aliens, and even got along pretty well with some of them, such as Tali.

These Tau, on the other hand, were starting to try her patience. When she had found out that members of a newly discovered alien race were coming aboard in order to examine the systems that allowed the Normandy to fly through mass relays, Gabby was more than a little confused by this as she had previously believed all space-faring species derived their technology from the mass relays. Then, she realized that meant this race was using totally new technology.

Now that they were here, she was beginning to regret the commander's decision. For one thing, Kenneth and she had to constantly keep an eye on them to make sure they didn't see anything they weren't supposed to. The kinetic barrier diagnostics, Thanix cannon systems and computer systems had been sealed off by EDI, but it was still hard to tell what the Tau were getting into at times.

Adding to the problems was the fact that the Tau engineers were almost patronizing in their questions and tones. They seemed to be making assumptions about human technology that Gabby, quite frankly, found offensive. To make matters worse, they never seemed to break their almost zen-like calm manner.

One of the Tau, referred to by the others as Fio'Ui, though Gabby didn't know if that was a name or rank, strode over to her station. "Forgive me, Engineer Daniels. We have completed our analysis, and are ready to begin the file transfer. Is there any ritual you require us to perform?"

Gabby was glad Kenneth was in the mass effect core at the moment. His response to this may very well have sparked an interstellar incident. "For the last time, no! There are no rituals, no prayers, no blessed oils. It's just like any ordinary technology." She wondered where they were getting this stuff.

The Fio'Ui said nothing, only turning back to his console. "Transfer in progress. It will be complete in approx. 15 minutes, by your time. May I offer assistance in any other manner?"

"No, that's unnecessary." Gabby inspected the Tau's work. "That is impressive. In the Alliance, this level of work would get a commendation."

"All work for the Greater Good demands nothing short of one's very best." The Tau turned back to his work. "Each caste must do its part."

"You have a caste system? Like the batarians?" Gabby was careful to keep her tone neutral.

"I am not familiar with the batarians. The Earth Caste builds the Tau Empire, developing its infrastructure and technology. The Water Caste serves to facilitate community within the Empire and with the outside. The Air Caste connects us from amongst the stars, and the Fire Caste protects us from the selfish, soulless and the mad. All follow the guidance of the Ethereals, who teach us the enlightenment of the Greater Good." The alien's expression did not change from his usual subdued countenance.

"So, the Ethereals rule the Tau? What voice do the other castes have?" The human engineer was having trouble not being disturbed by this familiar sounding pattern. These Tau didn't seem as belligerent as the batarians, but with their technology, they could be a great threat to the Alliance.

"Indeed, the Ethereal Caste speaks wisdom beyond any others. They brought us out of the Mont'au, the time of darkness. None question them, for fear of returning to that terrible state. Such is the way of the Tau, as is proper."

His tone of voice, the fervent belief he had in his cause, caused some concern in Gabby, but she dismissed it. Sure, these Tau were rigid, but so were the turians. As long as they kept their beliefs to themselves, everyone could get along just fine.

* * *

><p>Samara opened the door to Starboard Observation for her usual meditation. She was surprised to find one of the Tau fire warriors there, silently observing the blue-green planet below. He was wearing the new grey and red uniform she had seen the Tau wearing over the past few days. Based on the markings, she believed him to be amongst the higher ranks.<p>

"I have come to enjoy this view. An unobstructed window into eternity gives one a perspective rarely found elsewhere." After a moment of pause, she added, "I was not aware any members of the Fire caste were on board."

"I am here at the request of the Aun'el. He deemed it wise to ensure the Air and Earth caste members have a protector. I do not question his wisdom; it is beyond me." He turned to her, his expression resolute but not hostile. Samara noted that he held himself with great discipline, to rival a turian, but also a calm reserve that seemed perpetual. "I am Shas'O Lynu'elan."

"Justicar Samara. You are the commander of the Tau ground forces in this sector, are you not?" Samara found it peculiar that such a high-ranking officer would be assigned to such a menial task, but she kept it to herself. She could not but help feel that there was more going on here than was visible on the surface.

"Indeed," he said, "I have been assigned command of the newly formed Clee'san sept of the Tau Empire. As the first system brought under the aegis of the Tau, it is a great responsibility to oversee its defense. I have been given a great honor, and I intend to fulfill my station with courage and devotion."

"Admirable. Based on your success against the geth, I believe you are capable." She turned to the world below. "Your people are most dedicated, more so than any I have seen. I have a great respect for that. My own people are respected for being the oldest race known to have traveled space. However, I sometimes feel we are losing focus, and I am not alone. I believe your people have a great deal to teach us, and the rest of the galaxy."

Lynu'elan held his peace for a moment. "It is indeed good that you are open to such an exchange. I hope all are as wise, but my experience denies me such optimism. I hope to speak with you again in the future. If you will excuse me, I have duties to attend to." He nodded his head and departed. Samara took her usual meditation pose. She had a lot to contemplate.

* * *

><p>Commander Shepard exited the lift onto the command deck of the Normandy. Yeoman Chambers turned from her post to him. "I have spoken to a number of Tau. They remind me a bit of a mix of turian and asari, if that makes any sense. The most striking thing is their devotion to their ideals and leaders. It is the driving force in their lives. I'm not sure if I find it admirable or frightening."<p>

"I'm certain they will be reasonable; they may be devoted, but I wouldn't call them fanatical. In my experience, diplomacy can bridge any gaps, as long as people don't allow fear and misunderstanding to grow into conflict." Shepard's reassuring tone put Kelly at ease.

"Commander, the Tau have reported they have modified their drives for compatibility with the mass relays. "EDI's artificial voice announced, "We are ready to proceed to the Citadel."

"Understood, tell them we're coming." Shepard proceeded up the length of his vessel to the bridge. Joker was looking at something out the foreword hatch.

"Well, now that is impressive," the helmsman said as Shepard took a look out. A sand-colored vessel, the size of a dreadnought, hung in space flanked by two cruiser-sized vessels. They were wide, with sweeping, organic fins and curved shapes. "Looks like the Treaty of Farixen may need to be revised. According to the Tau I spoke to, the big one's a cruiser. They have a whole size category bigger than anything the Citadel provides for."

"Makes you wonder what they need all the firepower before." Shepard noticed Miranda had arrived on the bridge. "Still, it will be helpful against the Reapers," she added.

"Breaking orbit. Currently in formation with the Tau fleet, en route to Chi-7 mass relay," Joker announced. The trip took several hours, eventually Shepard was looking out the main viewport again, this time at the blue glow of a mass relay.

Mass relays were long-range transit devices millions of years old, and the foundation of interstellar travel for all previously known races; the Tau were the first encountered not familiar with them. Most of the galaxy believed they were the crowning achievement of the extinct Prothean empire, but Shepard was one of the few that knew the dark truth. The mass relays were created by the Reapers to facilitate their cycle of galactic extinction.

As the Normandy approached the Mass Relay, it lit up. Too quickly; the vessels were not yet close enough to jump the relay. There was a burst of light, and an armada of geth ships appeared on the scanners.

Joker swore under his breath. "Those don't look friendly!"

"All hands, prepare for battle!" Shepard announced over the intercom. "Get the main guns online! Target the lead geth cruiser. Joker, put us on an intercept trajectory."

The fleets closed on each other. The geth had numerical superiority, and neither side had been tested against each other on this scale. The geth sent a volley from their spinal-mounted guns. The bright violet pulses struck the front screens of the Tau ships, but were deflected above and below their targets.

In response, the two Protector-class Tau cruisers fired their gravatic launchers. Drone missiles launched forth at a fraction of the speed of light. Their impact collapsed the geth ships' kinetic barriers, and then struck with yet enough energy to cripple them. The Normandy gave a shot of its thanix cannon, which took out a geth frigate.

"Yeah! Gotcha, flashlight heads!" Joker exclaimed as he lined up the Normandy on another target.

"Contact the Tau, see if they have any other ships in the area," Shepard ordered.

The Tau never encountered Prothean technology as they advanced. Where they came from, and when they began, no Prothean relics began. They developed along another path, and had their own FTL technology. While not nearly as expedient as the relays, it was significantly faster than the unassisted FTL of the geth.

This enabled the Tau to respond much quicker than the geth could anticipate. Before the initial fleet closed to midrange, the Tau admiral Kor'O Eldi'Kunas and her fleet arrived at the sight. A second, more devastating barrage of gravatic drone rounds thinned the geth fleet.

The geth broke off from the Citadel-bound ships to engage the new threat. Both sides began to launch strike craft as they closed to mid-range. The geth cruisers began to fire their broadside batteries as the Tau opened up with their railguns. The firefight continued as the ships closed, with Tau Barracuda fighters and geth attack drones swarming in between them. Here, the Tau proved the more successful, despite being outnumbered. Despite this, neither side seemed to possess an advantage.

That changed when the fleets closed within the range of the Tau ion cannons. The geth's kinetic barriers had a negligible effect on the stream of particles these weapons produced. They disintegrated the geth armor upon impact, cutting great scars in the metallic hulls.

It was then that O'Elkas devised a most cunning strategy. She ordered her capital ships to target the geth point defenses with precision ion cannon fire. Once they were disabled, she launched waves of Manta bombers. They flew within the now defenseless geth ship's barriers, then delivered their missile payloads.

The battle then turned utterly one-sided. The geth were unable to provide any form of counter-measure to this attack, and turned in an attempt to escape the range of the ion cannons. With their barriers weakened, the Tau opened up once again with their railguns, to devastating effects. None of the geth ships made it back to the Chi-7 mass relay.


	8. Chapter 8

rkraptor70: I had significant trouble finding concrete values on the size of the Tau ships, so I originally put them on the extreme end of the Mass Effect scale, along with their weapons and tech. Given the information you provided, I made a quick change, which I think made sense.

A note: Whatever translation they are using also converts units of measurements, including time. So yes, when I say "years," I mean Earth years. The characters in the story understand this in the terms of whatever it relates to. I thought I'd get this out of the way.

* * *

><p>Outsiders<p>

Chapter 8

Four vessels emerged from Serpent Nebula relay. One C-sec was familiar with. It was a privately owned frigate which had been filed as "Spectre Use," and was identified as the Normandy.

The other vessels drew far more attention. Almost a kilometer across, they rivaled the vessel Sovereign that had led the geth assault on the Citadel two years before in mass. Despite being informed beforehand, several turian and human vessels scrambled.

To prevent a diplomatic incident, all Citadel Fleet vessels were instructed to hold position just outside the arms of the colossal space station. The three Tau starships held position several hundred kilometers out.

"So, this is the Citadel? An impressive feat of engineering, as it were," Aun'el Cea'cen said as he looked out from the bridge of the Emissary-class cruiser Fal'shia Il'Porrui Kor'ui Val'un. "I predict we have much to learn from each other. Kor'ui, inform them we are ready to come aboard."

The vessel's commander nodded and went about his task. An aide approached Cea'cen. "Your Excellency, the Kor'vossta reports success against the synthetic army. The enemy was utterly annihilated."

The Aun'el said, "And did Kor'O Eldi'Kunas observe the proper protocols for this region of space?"

The aide inclined her head affirmatively. "All vessels in the Kor'vossta have their weapons set at 20% power. They will remain at that setting until you give the order to increase to full."

"This is good news, indeed. It is important we do not yet reveal our full strength. These aliens already believe we greatly outclass them; there is no need yet to reveal how great the magnitude is. If these Reapers Commander Shepard warned us of are approaching, then we shall then bring our full might against them. Until then, we shall soften our blows."

The Orca departed the docking bay of the Fal'shia Il'Porrui Kor'ui Val'un, Aun'el Cea'cen, his entourage, and Water Caste representatives aboard. A pair of Manta gunships escorted them as they flew to the Citadel.

They came up upon the Destiny Ascension, the Asari built dreadnought that served as the flagship of the Citadel fleet. Massive by Citadel standards, it was roughly comparable to a Tau cruiser, and was easily dwarfed by the colossal capital ships of the Imperium. However, the Imperium did not exist here, which gave supremacy to the Tau. This pleased the Air Caste greatly.

* * *

><p>Captain Anderson watched as Councilor Udina paced at the docking center. Anderson had officially retired from politics, having had enough of it, but the Alliance thought that this contact was important enough to warrant dusting him off. This infuriated Udina to no end, and Anderson didn't find the arrangement much to his liking, either. This was his assignment, however, and he would put up with it.<p>

"This is a big headache," Udina said to no one in particular. "An alien race appears in space previously thought to be empty. They have vessels the size of Sovereign and even more powerful, and technology that doesn't even resemble Prothean Mass Relay."

"Come now, councilor. Surely you can see the opportunity this is?" Anderson asked, careful to keep his tone friendly and helpful. "These Tau may open up entire new avenues of scientific and technological advancement. Not to mention the cultural exchange that will occur. They possess a powerful military, certainly, but they have not shown any signs of hostility. I think this is very promising."

"An optimistic view, perhaps a bit naive for you, Anderson," Udina remarked. "Still, one can hope. Ah, the rest of the Council has arrived," he said as an air car deposited the powerful asari, salarian and turian. They were flanked by a squad of highly trained C-sec operatives, weapons visible but not drawn.

The alien councilors regarded their human counterparts. "Udina, Anderson," the asari councilor said. "Here they are now."

The tan, blocky alien ship gracefully landed at the docking bay, which directly accessed the Presidium, the central core of the Citadel station and served as main hub of galactic power. The vessel's airlock opened, and six armored soldiers emerged, their white helmets completely covering their faces. They took up positions beside the airlock, and lowered their large, blocky weapons.

A tall, regal alien then emerged. He was dressed in ornate regalia, and carried a large ceremonial staff. Behind him were others, dressed in more modest blue robes. A circular drone hovered beside them. The lead figure surveyed the landing zone and everyone in it, before approaching the Citadel Council.

"Many greetings and safe paths. I am Aun'el Cea'cen'Suam'Ol'Eoro, Holy Guide of the Clee'san Sept of the Tau Empire. This is Por'O Tash'ro and his adjuncts," he says, indicating his followers. "We have come in the name of the Tau'va, to spread harmony and enlightenment."

The asari councilor inclined her head in respect. "I am Matriarch Narthayya. This is Councilor Treyyen, General Praxis, and Councilor Udina," she said, indicating the salarian and turian before Udina. "We are pleased that you have come with such noble goals and hope to share in a future beneficial to both of us."

"We have much to discuss then," Cea'cen said as the group began to move towards the Presidium.

* * *

><p>In the Presidium's embassies, the representative of the elcor to the Citadel discussed the new arrivals with his volus counterpart. "Inquisitive. What sort of people do you think these new aliens are, Korlak?"<p>

The squat, rotund alien said between respirator breaths, "They show up at the Citadel in starships that put even the mighty turians to shame, bristling with massive weapons. I think their intentions are quite clear."

"Wistful. You are too pessimistic, Korlak. They have made no indication that they are hostile. The only aliens they have had contact with that we know of are the geth. It is expected that they would be prepared for conflict, under such circumstances. The elcor are prepared to listen to what they have to say."

"As are the volus, Calyn." The suited alien shakes his head. "I am simply concerned that one does not build such vessels without a very good reason. They would be more than sufficient against the geth. Why would they build vessels so overpowered? It seems a waste of resources."

The elcor turned his ponderous body to the window of his office. "Resigned. It appears you will soon have your answers. The Council is convening."

The Citadel Council had convened in its grand chamber within the Presidium. While only four races were currently members, representatives of all races that had an embassy on the Citadel were present to view this momentous event.

* * *

><p>Shas'O Lynu'Elan studied them all with a careful eye. There were present some of these open-minded humans, blue-skinned asari like Samara, the proud turians, a race called salarians, and others. He saw short, bulbous aliens in sealed suits covered in tubes, large creatures standing on four legs ape-like, shifty four-eyed bipeds, and creatures that looked like ocean dwellers, perched upon slender tentacle-like legs.<p>

_All will serve the Greater Good,_ though the shas'o. _It is the way things are meant to be. _

Aun'el Cea'cen stood before the council. The asari councilor spoke, "This meeting of the Citadel Council is to establish formal diplomatic relations with the interstellar body known as the Tau Empire, and facilitate an exchange of culture between our peoples."

The salarian councilor spoke up. "For 2500 years, the Citadel Council has stood as an anchor of peace, harmony, and mutually beneficial cooperation between civilized people. We come together to share ideas, knowledge, philosophy, art. Our exchange enriches all who participate."

"The Citadel unifies the strength of its members," the turian councilor said. "Together, we stand against those who would threaten our prosperity. In the past, the combined force of the Citadel has repelled the rachni, krogan, and geth. The Citadel ensures the security of its members."

Lastly, Councilor Udina spoke. "True trust must be earned. The Tau will have to prove themselves a steadfast ally before being given all privileges. However, we are willing to take the first step, and extend a hand of friendship. Are the Tau prepared to accept it?"

Cea'cen spoke. "Since the end of the Mont'au, the Tau Empire has existed for one purpose: To bring all peoples together and serve the Greater Good. It is our desire that all sentient beings be guided to an end that is in their best interest. For years, centuries in space, we have encountered only barbarians, madmen, and those too selfish to look past their own ambition. It is a most generous gift to find another people so open and sharing in our goals. We accept your hand of friendship, and hope to see our goal brought to fruition." He raised his staff in benediction, and the council chamber erupted in applause and other displays of approval.

* * *

><p>The Council convened in private after, to discuss the events of the meeting.<p>

"There is going to be a lot that needs to be ironed out," said Udina. "These Tau have developed in isolation from Citadel Space. They may have developed along paths not permitted by Citadel Law. Then there's the matter of those ships."

"Agreed," the turian councilor said. "If those vessels are anything to judge by, the Tau fleet is not in compliance with the Treaty of Faraxin. That is not their fault, but it must be addressed." The turian thought for a moment. "They could be a great help in the event that the geth strike again. Not to mention the leverage it would give us over the Terminus systems."

The salarian nodded. "These Tau could be the key to further expansion and stability for Citadel space. Or, they could be our undoing. Great care must be taken with this. This could be the most important work of diplomacy since the formation of the Council."

"We are capable," the asari councilor said. "The Tau seem open enough. I am confident that we can make an arrangement that meets our needs. We have work to do, then." The councilors went about their business.

* * *

><p>Shas'O Lynu'elan awaited his Ethereal master at a promenade overlooking a large, crystal artificial lake upon the Presidium. While he maintained his stoic countenance, his mind was confused and troubled. He required the wisdom of the aun'el.<p>

Cea'cen approached. "The council of the Citadel possess much wisdom. I feel much conviction that they will join the Greater Good in time." His perceptive eyes peered into the shas'o. "You are troubled, my friend. What is it that weighs upon your heart?"

"It is these gue'la. The humans, and the rest," Lynu'elan said. "They give promises of friendship, but do not embrace your wisdom in the way they should. They claim to seek the Greater Good, but exalt themselves as equal in wisdom to the Ethereal Caste."

"Do not concern yourself over such things," Cea'cen said reassuringly. "It is not in your knowledge; you are Fire Caste. Leave such things to us and your Por'Fann brothers. You must remember that, while it is the way of the Tau to embrace the guidance of the Ethereals, the other races must be educated in the benefits of our wisdom. In this matter, it is as such as a hunter; the prey is caught with patience. With time, we will convince them to accept our leadership."

The shas'o nodded, the burden upon his mind lifted. "It is like a patient hunter; in time they will see. I understand now, Most Wise One, and will not doubt your plans again." He bowed in respect. "A thousand gratitudes for your revelation. With your permission, I have duties to attend to."

"Yes, that is best," the aun'el dismissed him. He then looked over the lake, contemplating many things.


	9. Chapter 9

I apologize for the wait and the shorter chapter; I got tired of staring at it and just wanted it done. I have no idea how long it will take me to get the next one out.

* * *

><p>Outsider<p>

Chapter 9

While Citadel bureaucrats and Water Caste diplomats began to draw up the treaty connecting the newly-discovered power to the rest of the civilized galaxy, the crew of the Normandy gathered in the briefing room. They all knew that the coming unification represented far more than even the Citadel leaders believed, but they also suspected there was something less benign going on beneath the surface.

Legion was the first to step forward. The geth platform represented the greater faction within the geth, which favored an isolationist, rather than hostile, policy concerning biological life. A gestalt entity consisting of more than a thousand programs, "he" had originally set forth to find Commander Shepard, who had destroyed the Reaper Sovereign. Since then, Legion had proven a solid, if somewhat not yet fully trusted, member of the Normandy team.

The synthetic voice intoned, "We have recently received a report concerning the conflict between the heretic geth and the organics known as the Tau. Heretic geth suffered 100% casualties. Tau vessels sustained minimal damage."

Zaeed whistled. "One-siding the geth in space? Who the hell did we just unleash on the galaxy?"

"There's more," Shepard said solemnly. "EDI, were you able to find what I asked you for?"

The holographic icon of the ship's AI responded, "The Tau computers are highly advanced, and programmed with security software far more sophisticated than Citadel standards. I was unable to gain any meaningful access to their databanks. I am sorry."

"Don't worry, EDI, we'll find another way." Turning to his crew, Shepard said, "Something has been bothering me since we were interrogated by the Tau. When they questioned me, their line of inquiry was focused on something called the 'Imperium.' It seemed to me like they were trying to piece together the information I gave them intelligence they already had. I want to know what this Imperium is, and what the Tau have to do with it."

Miranda nodded. "That's certainly worth knowing. In fact, there's a lot about these Tau we know nothing of. Considering how powerful they've demonstrated themselves to be, that is a very dangerous place to be. The Illusive Man will likely set Cerberus to work."

"Tell him I don't want Cerberus to do anything messy. We can't lose sight of the true threat; regardless of whatever else the Tau might be, they are still the best hope the galaxy has against the Reapers." Shepard dismissed them.

Later, Miranda went to talk with Jacob. In the past, they had worked together on Cerberus missions; he had been her chief-of-security on the Lazarus Project which had restored Commander Shepard after the original Normandy was destroyed by the Collectors. "Jacob, we need to talk. I got a message from the Illusive Man; he's putting us on the Tau mission. We need to figure out what makes these aliens tick."

Jacob's eyes narrowed questioningly. "Why did he pick us? We're on Shepard's team, and like the commander said, the Reapers are still the bigger threat."

Miranda nodded, but added, "The Illusive Man has already begun collecting intelligence on the Tau, and he says he has discovered some disturbing patterns. He believes it is possible the Tau may be involved in the Reaper return, somehow. I have similar suspicions; Don't you find it odd that they would appear now, of all times? The commander told me he's been given a mission by Admiral Hackett that requires his solitary attention."

Crossing his arms, Jacob leaned back against the wall. Smiling ruefully, he reminisced, "When Shepard first woke up, I wasn't even sure he would ever take his eyes off of us, much less trust us with his ship. It took taking him down to Freedom's Progress to convince him work with Cerberus. Funny, but now I feel more like part of Shepard's team than I ever did working for Cerberus or the Alliance."

"Shepard's certainly a natural leader," Miranda agreed as she headed for the door. "Right now, we need that more than anything else."

* * *

><p>Time was running out.<p>

It was eternal. It was the many; a choir of voices, each distinct but all in harmony. It was the strong; it had engineered and executed the obliteration of numberless worlds and even more civilizations. Its purpose was certain, and its resolution was unstoppable. But despite recalling eons of time, it found that time was, for once, against it.

There were others, like itself, and each one equally ancient and mighty. They all shared its own sense of urgency. The organics did not understand; they could not be allowed to understand. The purpose they all strove for had to be fulfilled, and the organics were a direct threat to that purpose.

The barrier had stand, but it was already beginning to falter. The foolish organics were beginning to push on it, and far worse, what was on the other side was starting to push back.

* * *

><p>Weyrloc Gomul paced around his personal chamber, furious. As a krogan, that was not unexpected, but the reason stoked his anger to even greater levels. First, a band of humans had stormed the clan's fortress, killed his predecessor Guld, and destroyed the cure to the genophage that would have been the key to Clan Weyrloc's ascension to power. Guld's death was of little consequence; if he had been a worthy leader, he would still be alive. But the loss of the Genophage cure was a wound that would never heal.<p>

Following this disaster, the clan had suffered defeat after defeat in the hands of the alliance led by Clan Urdnot. Weyrloc had lost almost half of its original holdings, and could not afford one more loss. So when Gomul was informed that a stronghold that Weyrloc had held for countless generations had fallen, his anger reached an entirely new level. On the spot, he had murdered the soldier who had the misfortune of bringing him the news.

Now Gomul waited, for what he did not know. He wanted to tear the fortress and everyone in it apart, friend and foe alike. Nothing mattered beyond that; not the future of his clan, of Tuchanka, not his own life.

_You begin to understand._

"Who said that?" shouted Gomul into the empty room. "Show yourself! I'll tear you apart! I'll rip you to pieces with my hands!"

_So much anger. So much rage. So much strength. You will do. _

Gomul shouted back to the voice in his head. "Who are you?"

_In time, mortal. In time. Know this, the galaxy is changing. You are amongst the first to see the truth; others will need illumination. _

Gomul's bloodlust began to calm for the moment. He caught a glimpse in his mind; somehow, in his anger he had broken through to a higher level of enlightenment, and had begun to percieve a whole new level of reality. With new purpose, he set about the business of war. He had a feeling the tables were about to turn.


	10. Chapter 10

I realized as I was writing this that I had created a continuity snag that couldn't be fixed without altering the course of the fic. Fortunately the nature of the Warp meant I could sidestep this with just a few changes (learned 40k fans will be able to pick up on this in this chapter. I am aware of this, and will address it)

This chapter will also help bring the scope of the Tau's plans to light.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<br>Chapter 10

Por'ui Dyu'leth sat alone at the booth, ignoring her loud and disruptive environment. The aliens here insisted on garish displays of color and sound, and seemed to have no regard for the well-being of their senses. Worse yet was the purpose for all of this. The aliens who came here did so to indulge their own selfish desires, often at the expense of others. She did not enjoy this task in the least, but this is where she was needed, so she would go.

The Ethereals required that she reach out to another race, one who could aid in the efforts to curb one of the greatest threats to the Tau'va since her species had first taken to the stars. For some reason, this contact chose to meet with her here. Now, she waited in a place called Afterlife, on a station that was known by many names, one of them being Omega.

A particularly intoxicated alien, of the race known as the turians, approached her booth. Much to her chagrin, he decided to sit down uncomfortably close to her. "So," he said, "I ain't seen no one like you 'round here. Who might you be?"

"No one to concern yourself with," responded Dyu'leth. She discreetly closed her hand around the pulse pistol concealed within her robe. The weapon was a compact variant, designed specifically for use by the Water Caste in more dangerous environments. It was not as powerful or accurate as the Shas-model, but would be more than sufficient if this turian could not see the light of reason. "It would be best if you left at this time."

"Oh, would it?" The turian leaned back, his eyes narrowing. "I've heard about your kind. You show up out from who knows where, come in with your giant ships and think you own the place. Well I've got news for you, we're not jus' gonna let you-" The drunken rambling stopped as three figures approached. "Oh batarians. They friends of yours?"

"That's none of your concern, turian," the center batarian said, annoyance plain in his voice. "Leave. Now." The turian stumbled out of the relatively isolated booth, leaving the Tau alone with the batarians. The head batarian turned to her. "Friend of yours?"

"I fail to see why we had to meet in this, place," Dyu'leth said, although she was careful to keep her voice well modulated to prevent agitating the other party. "Surely there are more secure places, which are also in Citadel space and not a barbaric wilderness?"

"If you believe that, you are far too naïve for your own good," the batarian said. "There is no such thing as security in known space. The important part about meeting on Omega is that here I know who's listening in on us," he paused, fixing all of his eyes on the female alien, judging her response. There was none as far as he could tell. "And, of course, insure their silence. One way or the other."

"Very well then. Be warned, then, that we entrust you fully with responsibility in such manners." That was, of course, a lie; the Water Caste had long been tasked with ensuring that dissonant voices were silenced, but Dyu'leth was hardly going to reveal that to the batarian ambassador. "If this information should find its way into the wrong hands, we will be most displeased." As the ambassador's eyes narrowed, she quickly continued, "But do not worry; I informed my superiors that you are quite competent in such manners, and that you would be most discreet for both of our sakes. Now, I trust you have analyzed the data we gave you at our last meeting?"

The batarian ambassador huffed. "You mean the most preposterous story I have ever heard? I've examined it. I've come to three possible conclusions: the Tau are either deliberately wasting the time of the Hegemony for some reason I cannot fathom, your species is entirely insane, or you are telling the truth. As fantastic as the third option is, I see no alternative but to proceed as though it is so. Which brings the first question: why did the Tau decide to develop a colony in the past?"

Dyu'leth tilted her head just slightly to one side; the act of supplication was intended to unbalance her counterpart. "Surely you cannot expect us to give a full account of the wisdom of our Ethereals? Their reasoning is far beyond us to question or understand, simple obedience is our place." The batarians' caste system was a pale reflection of the Tau's; still, Dyu'leth could throw off the ambassador by invoking his arrogance at being of high-caste and his contempt of his inferiors.

"So be it. If you do not see fit to trust us, we will move on for now. It seems then we have a common enemy. The information you provide on the Imperium is the only reason the Hegemony is even considering keeping this channel open. Humanity must not be allowed to fulfill this dark destiny."

The Tau diplomat nodded fervently, her voice full of zeal, though still only loud enough to be heard in the booth. "Humanity is the greatest threat to the Greater Good currently in the galaxy. The other races of the Citadel seek to use them as tools, not realizing how terrible their potential is. Now only you can see that left unchecked, they will sweep across the galaxy, destroying all that come across their path."

"We must work together to stop this from happening," agreed the batarian ambassador. They then began to discuss their plans in earnest, as the rest of the club continued to dance to a pounding beat, apparently oblivious to the significance of their meeting.

* * *

><p>Nassara continued to dance, the chemicals flowing through her blood now seeming to lose their effect. She struggled to try to keep the beat, despite her exhaustion. She hadn't rested in days, kept going only by her determination and drugs. She was on a mission to find that place, that state of higher being she had only experienced in that dream. A vortex of sensation, in which she could lose herself completely...<p>

Since she had that dream, she had devoted herself with reckless abandon to the pursuit of this state, only to find to her dismay that it seemingly eluded her. The drugs that had previously caused her to soar to ecstasy had lost their effect, becoming dull. The music no longer caused her soul to stir. Food had lost its taste; color its vibrancy. Even melding had lost its ability to cause sensation.

She was slowly going numb, and the prospect of it terrified her.

Exhausted, Nassara finally gave up in despair. She didn't even bother to watch for potential threats on the way home, a potentially suicidal mistake on the streets of Omega. At this point she didn't care. She did keep enough of her faculties that, after she got home, she locked the doors and activated the security system. Disrobing, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Her normally blue skin had grown pale and blotchy, and her eyes were a deep purple bloodshot. Bothering with nothing else, she passed out naked on her bed.

The next morning, she awoke a new being. Last night, she had experienced another dream. This time, she had seen the origin of her greatest desires. A being and a state of being, which both had existed for all of time and yet also had not yet been born. This being did not yet have a name, yet that did not mean she could not find it. In fact, it had shown her exactly how to find it.

With this new purpose in mind, Nassara prepared herself for this new day.


	11. Chapter 11

It has been a while, but I'm still here. Do note that I'm not planning to let the events of Mass Effect 3 influence this story, as I haven't had time to play it yet, but I already know fairly well how I want it to turn out. Events will likely be so different as to render it a moot point anyway.

Also, I'm not that familiar with Nurgle, so I don't know how well I got the characterization this chapter. If you have any suggestions, please leave them.

NOTE: This chapter is a bit more graphic than previous ones. I don't think it warrants a higher rating, but if I am informed otherwise, I will change it.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<p>

Chapter 11

Weyrloc Gomul charged into the battle, bellowing a wordless warcry. The sounds of combat thundered about him, like a symphony of discord. He didn't care. Close at his heels were a horde of Weyrloc berserkers who felt what he had, an entirely new level of craving for violence that had unlocked new levels of strength and fury. His entire life was now spent in a red haze; even his dreams were of only fire-blasted warscapes filled with monstrous creatures tearing each other apart with tooth and claw. Above them all, he though he sensed an awesome presence. He yearned to catch this being's attention, and he knew there was only one way.

His newfound bloodlust was no longer sated by simply shooting his enemies; he and his berserkers now charged forward wielding crude weapons such as axes, mauls, and claw-like bracers strapped to their arms. They fell upon the foe with a fury that would make a thresher maw cower. Krogan rightfully carried a reputation for being the most physically resilient sapient species in known space, but the Weyrloc berserkers were seemingly invulnerable. Entire thermal clips were exhausted on them, but they kept clawing their way towards the enemy ranks as though possessed.

Gomul found himself face-to-face with a squad of enemy krogan. They opened fire with their shotguns, but he didn't slow in his charge. He laid into the nearest foe with an axe in each hand, spilling blood and neural fluid. He continued to hack and chop until his victim was reduced to an unrecognizable puddle of gore. The remaining enemies broke and fled. Snarling, he charged after them. Catching up to one, he scissored his axes across his enemy's back, nearly bisecting him. Not done, he then pulled the two halves apart, and punted one to the side.

Roaring in delight, he pounced onto the APC the enemy had boarded in a vain attempt to escape him. Embedding his axes in the armor of the vehicle, he thrust his meaty hands into a seam in the side of the vehicle. With impossible strength, he pulled the vehicle apart. The metal let out a terrific shriek as it was peeled away like the skin of a fruit. Pulling his axes out, he began to butcher the vehicle's occupants. His axes seemed to come alive as he wielded them, howling in delight and animatedly biting into the flesh of all who stood in his path.

He stopped, as he realized there were none left for him to kill. He looked around and realized that the only living creatures left on the battlefield were his fellow berserkers. He wasn't done yet; there was still more blood to spill!

_Blood for the Blood God!_

"Blood god?" Gomul said the words aloud. Where had those words come from? There was no such being in krogan mythology. Still, the words felt powerful as he said them. He realized that he had found at last the nature of the power he had glimpsed, as well as the only path he could take to gain the favor of this power.

"Yes," Gomul continued, raising his voice. "Blood for the Blood God!" he bellowed, eliciting a rallying cry from his followers. They no longer cared for the fate of Clan Weryloc; they were now the cult of the Blood God, and Gomul was the high priest. Chanting their new battlecry, they broke into a swift march over the surface of their war-blasted homeworld, and all Tuchanka would learn to tremble at their approach.

* * *

><p>Miranda waited in the booth at the Eternity bar on the asari-dominated world of Illium. Illium was one of the greatest achievements of the asari race, and every time she came, she was equally impressed by the beauty of the alien race's accomplishments, and motivated to do whatever she could to help humanity move forward so that they too could achieve such recognized fame.<p>

Sipping from her drink, she watched the passing figures, with representatives from nearly every Citadel race. Despite maintaining a relaxed appearance, she was always alert to trouble. At any given time, she knew the location and actions of everyone in the room. Her genetic augmentation helped, but it was years of training and field experience that had honed her senses to such a degree. In her field, any less attention could result in a messy death.

A human discreetly made his way through the crowd, towards her. She noted his approach, but was not alarmed; she had been waiting for him.

He took a seat next to her. "Long time no see, Miranda. Considering the things I've heard about your employers, I'm starting to question the wisdom of our relationship."

"You know me, David. The nature of our work may attract extreme elements, but it is absolutely necessary. I know you understand this, and that I'm not a terrorist."

David reclined in the booth. "I'm not saying you've been up to no good, just that I happen to think you've made some lousy choices regarding your friends. But I'm not your dad, and I'm guessing you didn't arrange for this meeting just to reminisce. Ask me what you need, and I'll tell you if I can get it. C-sec's got me in a pretty deep investigation right now, and I think I'm already being watched by some of my superiors after the last favor you asked me for."

Miranda called up some info on her omni-tool. "You're familiar with the Tau, the newest race in the galactic community?"

David nodded. "C-Sec has a pretty big headache, trying to sort out relations with them. They're the first race we've encountered to advance technologically as far as they have without encountering the Citadel. They've already made significant advances in technologies that the Citadel illegalized. We're likely going to have to triple customs inspections on ships traveling from Tau space to make sure they don't try to smuggle illegal goods to Citadel space."

Miranda waited for David to finish. "I think we might have bigger problems," she said, showing him the data. "I've found some disturbing information concerning the Tau. One of my contacts spotted one of their agents meeting with a batarian delegation on Omega. The only reason they would have to be out there is if they were doing something they didn't want anyone else to know about. The batarians were good, too; they thought that by buying off Aria they could ensure no news of their business could get out."

David's eyes narrowed as he looked at the data, containing information on Tau dealings under the table, and the movements of their agents, painstakingly collected by Cerberus operatives. "I can't promise anything, but I will see what I can dig up."

* * *

><p>Flotilla Marine Vors'Kanin Vas Yolunda looked out the viewport as his shuttle cruised through empty space. Behind him a handful of lightyears lay the safety of the Migrant Fleet, and the entirety of the quarian race. Closer, and only a couple hundred kilometers away, their mothership the Yolunda held station, waiting for him and his marines to complete their mission.<p>

Before him hung something far more ominous. The cruiser Qua'resma was one of the advanced scouting missions that the Migrant Fleet had decided to launch, following the Idenna. However, the Qua'resma fell out of contact sixty days into its mission, and had only recently been rediscovered. Since then, all attempts to reestablish contact with the vessel had been failures. Vors'Kanin and his team had been selected to board the ghost ship and determine the cause of the vessel's disappearance.

Vors'Kanin returned to the aft compartment of the shuttle, where his team was preparing for the mission. He picked up his assault rifle, making sure its ammo block was secure and he had a full magazine of thermal clips. Turning to his team, he said, "You all know the mission, so stay sharp. This ship is one of ours, so hold fire unless we get a positive ID on hostiles. Keep your eyes open for any crew members; they'll probably need our help. Best case scenario, they had a power failure and were forced to go into hibernation. Our main objective is to get to the bridge and reestablish control of the ship."

They docked with the Qua'resma, and disembarked swiftly. As they left the docking bay, Vors'Kanin immediately realized that something was terribly wrong onboard this ship. Generations of living in space had caused the immune systems of the quarian race to atrophy, and as a result they took severe precautions to ensure the cleanliness of their vessels. The insides of quarian ships were usually sterile and glistening, but not aboard the Qua'resma.

The corridor before them was filled with a grey-green mist, which obscured their vision and dimmed the light. The walls and floor were coated with a thick viscous substance, like fungus or mucus. One of his marines bent down, scanning it with her omnitool. "Sir," she said, astonishment in her voice, "I'm picking up, well, everything. Viruses, bacteria, just about every pathological organism seems to be represented in this growth. This entire ship would be considered a bioweapon by Citadel law, and a suit rupture in this environment would result in death in seconds."

"Keelah," Vors'Kanin muttered under his breath. "How the hell did this happen? We still need to get to the bridge." He activated his radio back to the Yolunda. "Yolunda, this is Vors'Kanin. This vessel is a biohazard level-0, repeat, biohazard level-0. I advise complete plasma sterilization once secured."

They proceeded down the corridor, and through the vessel. It was a tense journey, as the rest of the ship wasn't any cleaner than the entry point. The entire vessel seemed to be dead, they didn't encounter a single moving thing. At least not directly; a couple of times, his marines jumped at shadows, but found nothing. Perhaps most disturbing of all was the lack of bodies. There was no sign that anyone was aboard.

Eventually, the marine team arrived on the bridge. Fanning out, they began to reactivate the systems. "Open the logs. See if you can figure out what-" Vors'Kanin stopped as he noticed something on the floor. It was a transparent suit faceplate, cracked and discarded. The inside was coated in an organic residue. "Happened here," he said as he picked it up, finishing his thought.

A voice, sibilant and hoarse, reached out from the shadows. "It is good to see you, brother," the voice said, as its speaker slowly became visible in the fog.

"Who are you?" Vors'Kanin said, trying not to appear threatening while still readying his weapon. With a hand signal, he formed his team up behind him. The figure shambled forward, triggering a single curse from the marine beside him.

The creature appeared quarian, but only barely. Stripped of its environmental suit, its body was bloated and twisted by rot and pestilence. Maggots wriggled visibly beneath its skin, and had half-eaten its face. A thick green ichor dripped from open sores all over its body.

"Don't be afraid. You've lived in fear too long. I used to be like you, fearing the inevitable. But I asked myself, why do we fight the nature of the universe? I found no answer, instead realizing that the fight, though the nature of all living things, is also simply a sign of immaturity. We have outgrown such fear, and now embrace the truth."

"We?" Vors'Kanin asked, surreptitiously setting his weapon for incendiary ammunition. He reasoned that would be the most effective way of dealing with this threat. He was forced to rejudge the tactical situation as more rotting figures emerged from the mist.

"We've seen beyond the veil of this life," the spokesman of these monsters continued. "There lies a place free of pain, of fear, of suffering. Once you give up the struggle against it, you find yourself in its embrace. Please, just accept the generosity of the decay-"

Vors'Kanin had enough. He fired his shotgun directly into the creature's center of mass. The deranged former quarian erupted in a gout of flame. "We're breaking through!" he shouted to his team. They opened fire on the decaying congregation, consuming them with flames.

The marine team double-timed back the way they came, only to find their path blocked by more plague-quarians. These creatures were even more twisted and deformed, with sickly green flames in what passed for their eyes. As the marines tried to charge through, they realized that these monsters were somehow resistant to their weapons.

The marine at point bashed one of the monsters with the butt of her shotgun, then fired point blank into the creature's face. "There's no need for such a ruckus," the beast said, "I've got a present for you!" It then caught up the hapless marine in a tight bear-hug. The marine shrieked as the contact corroded her suit, breaching the seals. Her cries died as she began to suffer a violent coughing fit.

The marine team now found themselves surrounded as more monsters came from behind them. Vors'Kanin continued fighting even as he realized it was a hopeless cause. "Yolunda, this is Vors'Kanin! Destroy this vessel! Repeat, destroy this vessel!" He couldn't be sure if he was getting through. As the last of his team succumbed to the unnatural enemy, he resigned to not give these things the satisfaction of taking him. Pulling out a grenade, he pulled the pin, and held it to his chest as the enemy turned their attention to him.


	12. Chapter 12

At long last, I have a new chapter ready. I want to say I'll get another one out prior to the Apocalypse, but I make no promises.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<br>Chapter 12

Miranda held her head in her hands, letting out a long sigh. Not for the first time, she regretted getting into this assignment. She understood that the information she was looking for was vital to the future of humanity, but that knowledge did little to change the fact that her patience was wearing thin.

She had received further information from David about the secret meeting between the Tau and the Batarians on Omega. The batarian's name was Olaan Raal, a high-ranking member of the Hegemony government. She had then accessed the Cerberus database on Raal in an effort to find out why he had contacted the Tau.

This had been the first wall she had hit, as she found nothing that would give a reason as to why it had been Raal. He was a conservative bureaucrat who likely only attained his position due to personal contacts. The most remarkable thing about him was that he seemed unusually close to the batarian intelligence agency, a fact that had apparently cost Cerberus a good deal to learn.

She had been planning to go to Omega to try to learn more, when word got out of a Mass Relay detonation in the Bahak system. She had been amongst the first to learn what had happened, directly from Commander Shepard himself. She had come to realize that he was right to destroy the relay, but it made her task much more difficult. The batarian's relations with humans, always hostile, would now be lower than ever. If anyone found out that she was an associate of Shepard's, a distinct possibility considering she had been on Omega with Shepard several times before, it could likely turn suicidal.

And so she remained aboard the Normandy, at least until the Alliance arrested the commander and impounded the ship. Despite her continued efforts, even contacting Dr. T'soni, an old friend of Shepard's and the new Shadow Broker, there seemed nothing more she could do.

Turning from her desk in disgust, she looked out the window at the stars streaking by. She had never been religious, due possibly to her artificial creation. Still, at that moment, a powerful urge came over her.

"To whoever's out there that's in charge of knowing things, I could sure use some help here. I don't know what you want, but I'll find some way to get it," she said on a whim to her window. She didn't expect anyone or anything to here.

But in the cold darkness that lies between the stars, something did here. It chuckled as the vast tapestry of the cosmos rearranged itself in response to the slightest tugs on its strings. Everything was falling into place. Now it was time to deftly maneuver the being's rivals and companions to do its bidding.

* * *

><p>A Tau cruiser orbited an uninhabited moon on the edge of Clee'san Sept space. Every weapon on its exterior was fully armed, and its deflector shields were at maximum power. Smaller fighter craft swarmed around its exterior in a tight formation. Within the armored shell of its hull, members of the Fire and Air castes moved quickly to perform their duties. In the command center, the kor'el directed all of his crew in a unified purpose.<p>

Space distorted for a brief instant, then a sea of grey metal materialized where there had previously only been empty space. Countless points of bloody red light glowed ominously amongst the unyielding wall, some rapidly building in intensity.

The Reapers had arrived.

The Tau cruiser responded immediately. There was an intense burst of radiation as it fired its gravatic launcher at full power. The missile drone impacted the first Reaper with enough force to vaporize it, the expanding ball of superheated gas it had become impacting its neighbors with shattering force.

The Reapers continued to close in.

The Tau cruiser continued to fire, blasting holes in the advancing wall of ancient machinery. Fighters and bombers broke off their escort pattern and moved to intercept. Swarms of orb-like craft sprung forth from the advancing machines. The two fleets of small craft clashed, exchanging ruby-red beams and flashes of railgun fire.

The Reapers began to fire.

The beams from the massive ships scythed through the fleet of smaller vessels, before striking the shields of the cruiser. The shields held long enough for the cruiser to return fire, its massive railgun batteries striking devastating blows upon their foes.

The Reapers parted, encircling their targets.

The Tau cruiser began to fire its ion cannon. The beam, unaffected by kinetic barriers, began to vaporize the nearest Reaper. It continued to fire all batteries, inflicting more casualties upon the seemingly endless foe. The crew continues with unwavering resolve despite the overwhelming odds. Nevertheless, it was clear who was going to win the struggle.

The Tau cruiser's deflectors went down, after taking far more of a beating than even their original creators had expected. The Reaper beams began to systematically remove weapon systems, first the unstoppable ion cannon, then railgun turrets. Next, the Reapers targeted engines, crippling the ship. As a final blow, a larger Reaper focused a particle beam directly on the ship's plasma core. The core erupted, igniting the vessel's atmosphere and incinerating the crew.

The remaining flightcraft, now lacking a carrier, converged and performed a mass suicide maneuver on the largest Reaper ship in the area. They succeeded in damaging it, but not slowing it.

The Reapers continued inwards.

* * *

><p>Shas'el Hyru'eles fired his plasma rifle at the approaching Reaper Brute. The bright electric fireball burned straight through the massive beast with ease, killing it in a fraction of the time it would have taken Citadel weapons.<p>

The attack had begun hours ago when the alien vessels had appeared over this planet, a barren rock on the edge of the Clee'san sept. At first, the Earth Caste had assumed it was another geth incursion, one employing more advanced technology. Very soon, though, the Tau had realized that they were in fact the Reapers that Commander Shepard had warned of. The Ethereal Aun'el Cea'cen had ordered that all of the strength of the sept be used to stop them.

And by the will of the Ethereals and in the name of the Greater Good, it would be so.

His motion sensors indicated a rapidly approaching tide of husks from his left flank. Turning, he unleashed a wave of flame from his Crisis Suit, incinerating the approaching horde. All across the battlefield, the scene was repeated, with the advanced technology of the fire warriors cutting down Reaper biosynthetic drones by the hundreds.

And yet, somehow the Tau were still unable to gain ground. This new enemy attacked with numbers comparable to a Tyranid hive fleet. Nevertheless, the Tau held. Hyru'eles looked on with pride as left, right, and center, lines of fire warriors sent a continuous barrage of pulse weapon fire down at the approaching horde, cutting through it with ease. The entire battlefield was ablaze with blue fire, from plasma weapons on one side, and biotic energy from the other.

The shas'el withdrew his attention from the bigger picture as he was alerted to a wing of rapidly approaching Praetorians. He took to the sky, activating shoulder-mounted missile launchers. The missile pods shuddered as a swarm of micro-warheads sped outwards, traveling in an erratic flight path. They struck the first three Praetorians, knocking them out of the sky and causing them to disintegrate in a swarm of nanites.

Hyru'eles was forced then to evade as deadly beams of light shot forth from the hostiles. He devoted his entire concentration to maneuvering, getting off a shot with his plasma rifle every chance that he had. A wing of gun drones moved to intercept, but were unable to cause any damage before they were blown out of the sky. Audio reports from his units indicated that at the moment a massive wave of enemy reserves were attacking on all fronts. He briskly ordered hazard suits to the front to support his fire warrior line before incinerating a praetorian that had closed within range of his flamer.

His suit suddenly shook as something heavy struck him from behind. He barely had time to adjust his now ballistic flight path from a deadly crash to a hard landing. He immediately reoriented his suit to try to identify the target, but he wasn't fast enough. One of the remaining praetorians latched itself onto the front of his suit, and began emitting a deadly amount of biotic energy, threatening to tear his suit apart.

With deft hands, he activated the ejection system on his suit, and was propelled away from his suit and across the battlefield. He landed in a relatively isolated area, with no movement immediately visible.

"This is the shas'el. My suit is down, and I require immediate..." he stopped as he looked up, noticing the massive black claw-like shape that was currently descending from space. It touched down with impossible gentleness considering its cries, and let out a terrible, inorganic roar that sent a chill down the Tau commander's spine.

The Reaper set about its deadly purpose without delay. It began with firing a lance of ruby fire which erased the Hazard suits whose burst cannons were the only thing holding the husk swarms back from the fire warrior line.

"All units, fall back to a more defensible position!" ordered Hyru'eles immediately. "Deploy Broadsides to Sector 12. All fire warriors, fall back!" From his position, he could see the reaper horde descend upon his cadre. Despite their efforts to initiate an orderly retreat, the husks tore into the first ranks. The Tau warriors fought as hard as their strength allowed, but they were drowning in a sea of animate, desiccated bodies.

Shas'el Hyru'eles turned as he sensed movement suddenly behind him. He turned, drawing his pulse gun. Three dozen husks stood before him, gazing vacantly upon him with electronically glowing eyes.

He fired off one shot, hitting the first dead in the chest. It went down, dissolving into a slurry of biological and technological matter. The rest bolted forward, closing the distance between them and him with nightmarish speed. Trying desperately to remain calm, he continued firing as his last few seconds ran out.


	13. Chapter 13

I had to change Mass Effect canon a little bit to make this work. You'll notice it later.

On the geth vs Tau: Geth weapons used phase ammo, designed for shield penetration, not armor. They could get through eventually, true, but the Tau can destroy them in a single shot.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<br>Chapter 13

Captain Anderson was moving at a fairly rapid clip, fully intending to make it to the emergency meeting of the Citadel Council as quickly as possible. He already had a good idea what the meeting was about, and didn't want to miss it for several reasons. Chief among them was his duty to protect the Alliance and all of humanity, and that required performing his duties with utmost attention, speed, and professionalism. On a far more personal note, he wanted to see the Council's face when he was finally proven right.

As he entered the council chambers, he looked up to the main display. A Tau naval commander was sending out a message, the normally calm behavior of his race strained. Framing his face were various images and data readouts, all clearly indicating what Anderson and Shepard had been saying for years.

"The enemy has driven us back on all fronts. We have destroyed many of their vessels, but their numbers show no signs of decreasing. Our worlds are falling to them. We cannot allow them to reach our capitol."

As the transmission concluded, Aun'el Cea'cen, who was present for the meeting, spoke. "This new threat is of grave concern to all the united races of the Citadel. If we do not stand together, we shall surely fall on our own. I must implore you to act to save all of our races."

Councillor Udina stepped forward. "The Systems Alliance believes that the Tau are the best chance we have at defeating the Reapers." He pounded his fist into his hand, continuing. "The aun'el is right; only a combined-arms strike built around the superior weapons of the Tau Navy has a chance of holding off this storm. We waste the only opportunity we will get to defeat them if we let our new allies fall."

There was a faint but audible rise in volume as the various lesser delegates muttered their approval of the human councillor's speech. The turian councillor, General Praxis, stepped forward. "The Turian Hierarchy has determined that it would be of greatest strategic benefit to commit as many resources as possible to defeat this threat before it has a chance to proceed further in galaxy. Our fleet is already being prepared."

This was a massive victory, Anderson knew. That the turian councillor, the most skeptical and adversarial of the Citadel Council, along with the one controlling the largest fleet, had supported them improved their odds greatly. All it would take was one other member agreeing to all but ensure the rest of the Citadel following suit.

"The Asari Republic will agree to this joint-force operation. Better to stand together than fall separately."

For the first time in a long time, Captain Anderson felt hope for the future. There was a good possibility that the Reapers could be defeated once and for all.

* * *

><p>The <em>Normandy <em>was abuzz with activity, inside and out. It was at long last time to take the fight back to the Reapers, and Commander Shepard was leading the attack. The council had decided to reinstate him until the crisis had abated, at which point a full investigation into his actions would take place.

Samara prepared herself, both physically and mentally, to board the Normandy as it was loaded up and fitted to launch to the Eta Rho system with the rest of the Citadel fleet. The fleet would rendezvous there with the gathered force of the Kor'vattra, then engage the main body of the Reaper fleet before it could attack more heavily populated worlds. The battle ahead was likely to be the most difficult she had ever fought in, and could very well be her last. Even so, she didn't think she had ever fought in a more worthy battle in her life, which considering the lifespan of asari, gave the situation true gravity.

As she walked, she noticed the approaching form of Shas'O Lynu'elan. The Tau commander was moving quickly and with purpose, giving orders to several of his subordinates. Samara reflected how serene and disciplined he was, even in this time of most dire circumstances. It was a peace she herself had struggled for most of her life to achieve, and wondered how a race so short-lived in years as the Tau could find it in so little time.

"Justicar Samara, it is good to see you again," the shas'o said as he passed by. "I wish it were under better circumstances. I have just been informed that one of our outer worlds has fallen to the Reaper fleet."

"I mourn your losses with you, and swear I will do whatever is in my power to see that they are avenged." Samara's voice was not unfriendly, but carried a hard edge to it. Her countenance was stern and resolute.

"It will be an honor to fight beside one as wise and noble as you," the shas'o replied, "in the final battle. Now I must go. The Ethereal needs to be escorted to our stronghold, I must take command. Our forces are mobilized, and they stand ready."

The two parted ways, each one heading to their own destinies.

* * *

><p>She didn't know how or why it had happened, but she didn't care. Miranda Lawson finally had the lead she needed.<p>

It did not bother her that every rational part of her mind should be telling her that pursuing a lead based solely on a dream was completely ridiculous. It flew in the face of an entire lifetime of scientific skepticism.

Something had snapped in Miranda's mind. Years of perceived failure coupled with the complete sense of helplessness in the face of the Reaper menace had finally taken its toll on her. The latest failure, the inability to connect the Tau to the batarians, had been too much.

And so, when she had first seen the vision, staring at a screen filled with meaningless data after petitioning the stars for help, she naturally took it as an answer to her prayers. It was clear to her that there was more to this than some random hallucination. Not only was it in perfect detail, but those details were also confirmed by what little intelligence she was able to scrounge up previously. It was a statistical impossibility that such a thing could be false.

Immediately, she had decided to contact her superior, the Illusive Man. She had been expecting a commendation and orders to investigate this planet, Korridon. The response she received was somewhat less than enthusiastic.

"A vision?" The Illusive Man's tone indicated his resigned dismissal of this notion. "You are willing to send an assault team into batarian space because you had a vision?"

Miranda shook her head crossly. "You don't understand what you're talking about. This wasn't some illusion dreamed up due to stress and sleep deprivation. I felt it, it was the most vivid experience I've ever had. The only word that I could possibly use to describe it is spiritual."

"Coming from you, Miranda, this has got to be one of the most disturbing things I have ever heard." The Illusive Man took a pull on his cigarette. "You've always been an operative I could count on to have a head on her shoulders and her feet on the ground. Now the only thing I can say for sure is that you've become unstable. I'm bringing you in, and putting you under observation."

"You can't just dismiss this! There are... forces at work here beyond any of us. Even greater than the Reapers. Surely you have to see this!" Anger was becoming audible in Miranda's words.

"The one thing that is truly frightening is that I think you are right." The Illusive Man pulled up several files on his desktop. "Crazy krogan, reportedly with unauthorized bioengineering, rampaging across Tuchanka. Reports of a hedonistic asari cult, dedicated to excess in all things, and willing to do anything for their next rush. And not least of all, rumors of a quarian ghost ship filled with terrifying monsters. As much as I hate to say it, as the Reapers have come closer, it seems as though the galaxy has had the juju flipped on it."

"If you aren't willing to advance humanity, I will have to do it myself," Miranda said, severing the connection. The Illusive Man stared at the space where her hologram had formerly been, realizing his task had now gotten infinitely more complicated.

"I should have seen this coming."

* * *

><p>Valaria gazed out upon the fire-blasted crater that the orbital weapons had carved out of the surface of Korridon. The blast had been precisely and specifically targeted; there could be no doubt about that. What confused the asari Spectre was why the batarians had blown a sizable hole in an uninhabited world. The odds of actually getting an answer were remarkably low, due to the simple fact that there was nothing left of the target, whatever it had been. Still, she hadn't gained her position in the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance unit by giving up when things looked impossible.<p>

Deciding to take a closer look, Valaria descended into the crater. While it wasn't likely, there was a remote possibility that she might find a few scraps that could shed some light on what had previously been there. At the very least, she could scan for any anomalous energy signatures.

Stopping for a moment on a relatively flat outcropping jutting from the crater wall, she activated her omnitool and set it for a wide area scan. Radiation levels here were highly elevated, but nothing her hardsuit couldn't handle. What puzzled her wasn't the radiation, increased thermal signatures, or even the traces of eezo, which would suggest that there was Citadel-level technology present at the explosion, but a certain type of signature that was normally only recorded during an asari Melding.

Putting aside those readings for others who would know what to make of them, she examined the variation she had detected in the local magnetic field. It was minute, and would not have been detected except for how close it was. Narrowing her scans, she tracked it to a metallic fragment buried only a hundred and fifty meters below her. She leapt straight down, using her biotic abilities to land safely.

It took her some time, but she finally uncovered the fragment. It was part of a support beam, suggesting that there had in fact been a structure here. The material suggested it was built by a Citadel race. Shifting the beam slightly, Valaria was startled by a blackened skull rolling out from under it. She examined it closer; while heavily damaged, it clearly contained four eye sockets. Had the batarians destroyed one of their own structures? If so, why?

She knew she had to get more information, so the only place to go was further into the crater. The descent was not going to be easy, as the rocky surface was broken and jagged, and could come loose at any point. Still, it was not the hardest thing she had faced.

She was halfway down when she first noted movement. Pulling out her assault rifle, she scanned her surroundings, trying to identify its source. Not seeing any confirmation, she continued forward, but kept on guard.

She hadn't gotten much farther when her honed instincts noted movement behind her. Spinning around, she found herself face-to-face with the largest krogan she had ever seen. Krogan were large as a race, but this one stood head and shoulders above the rest. Its size was not all that was notable about it. Its flesh seemed to have merged into its armor, with skin blending seamlessly into metal. Its hands, both grasping large, crude axes with snarling faces etched onto the blades, were tipped with razor-sharp claws.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" the creature said, eying her head to toe. "Have you come to answer the call of the Blood God as well?"

Valaria blinked. "By my authority as a Spectre, you are under arrest for the use of illegal genetic modification. Lower weapons and raise your hands," she said, snapping up her rifle. She had heard of the rise of strange, violent cults on Tuchanka, but had no idea that they had activity all the way out here.

The krogan laughed. "You are very bold. Your skull will make a worthy trophy."

"I don't think so," Valaria said, hurtling a bolt of biotic energy at the monster. The azure wave impacted the krogan, but simply dissipated like the ocean crashing on the shore.

"Your sorcery has no power over me," the beast said with a snarl. It leaped forward, bringing its axes around in a sweeping arc. Valaria dove to the side, firing a burst from her assault rifle as she did so. The rounds pinged off the krogan without apparently injuring it in any way. Switching to armor-piercing rounds, she used her powers to reposition herself at higher ground, then took careful aim and landed a well-placed burst on the beast's skull. It recoiled at this, shaking its head as though she had just landed a good punch.

Valaria knew she needed more firepower to take this monster down. Lobbing a grenade, she prayed to the Goddess that she would have enough time to make it back to her ship, and blast the abomination to ashes with its guns. Fortunately, her powers gave her the advantage in this regard. The monster was heavy, and though it was much faster than its speed would suggest, it was having trouble navigating the jagged terrain.

She was nearly at the top when the monster made an impossible leap. It jumped fifty meters into the air, coming down directly on top of her. Valaria barely had time to dive out of the way before the beast landed with a tremendous crash. She cried out in pain as it brought its axe down on her thigh, splitting the suit and carving a deep gash in her leg.

Time seemed to slow for the asari Spectre as the monster brought its other axe down. She noticed how the rock beneath its feet had shifted from its landing. Thinking quickly, she brought her rifle up and fired a concussive blast, dislodging the rock shelf from the cliffside. The monster fell backwards, bellowing as it became caught in a rockslide. Valaria leaned back, taking a moment to catch her breath before applying medigel to her wounded leg and beginning to limp the rest of the way out of the crater.

* * *

><p>Nassara smiled as she saw the figure approaching over the horizon. "Look, sisters," she said, "That must be the one the Citadel ship belongs to. Let's give her a welcome she won't soon forget."<p>

The asari rose up from their revelries as they moved to approach the figure. It wore a black and red hardsuit, stained with deep blue blood on one of its legs. The elongated helmet and feminine figure suggested it was another asari. This made Nassara happy, as she had always felt it was her and her sisters that were most capable of experiencing the sheer power that lay in the senses.

"My name is Valaria. I am a Citadel Spectre, and need your-" Valaria stopped short as she noticed the finer details of the figures she was talking to. Nassara and her followers weren't wearing hardsuits despite the less than hospitable climate of Korridon. In fact, they weren't wearing much of anything. Most of their bodies were covered in piercings, primarily displaying a strange symbol consisting of a circle and crescent intersected by a line. That was not the most disturbing thing, though. Several of them had their head-fringes lengthened and mutated into prehensile tentacles which were twitching in anticipation. "Who are you?" she said angrily, raising her weapon.

"Only those few who have seen what the true secrets of the universe are," Nassara responded. "Tell me, sister, were you called here to, or brought simply by providence?" By this time, Valaria was completely surrounded. 


	14. Chapter 14

Yes, I know it has been a while. Don't worry, I'm not finished with this yet; I tend to put it on the back burner for a while, then get a sudden burst of inspiration and turn out a chapter in one sitting. The other alien races won't likely be appearing, except for perhaps in passing. My plans for the Imperium will likely catch everyone unawares; I'm moving far from ME canon, but mostly to fit better with 40k.

* * *

><p>The Outsiders<p>

Chapter 14

Jeffrey Moreau, more commonly known as Joker, was probably more nervous at this particular moment than at any other time in his entire life. He had to repeatedly wipe the sweat that was accumulating on his palms off on his uniform, despite the fact that his console was not actually in any way physical. Compared to this, his final flight exams were practically therapeutic.

Granted, he was not the only nervous member of the Normandy crew. In fact, he doubted there was anyone on board save EDI and Legion that wasn't on edge. And for good reason; the Normandy was currently rendezvoused at the Chi-7 Relay with the rest of the Citadel fleet, preparing to reinforce the beleaguered Kor'vattra as the Reapers pushed further into the Clee'san sept. This fleet, and the battle it was preparing to join, would determine the fate of the entire galaxy and every living thing in it. No matter what happened, things would never be the same again.

Commander Shepard walked onto the bridge, an aura of sheer resolution about him that could strengthen the will of anyone who had the privilege of serving beside him. Joker had known the commander since he had been given his position on the Normandy SR-1, what felt like a lifetime ago. Since then, he had followed the commander through hell and hailstorm, facing down a terrifying and implacable enemy. Joker felt his fear subside, replaced with an anxious excitement.

"EDI," Shepard said, standing directly behind Joker and peering out the forward viewscreen at the assembled armada, "What is the status of the fleet?"

EDI's holographic avatar appeared. "All vessels have taken their position in formation around the Destiny Ascension. We await Fleet Command's order."

The tension of the next few moments was finally broken when a signal was received from the Destiny Ascension.

"All vessels; proceed to Sector 1809. Prepare to engage the enemy immediately upon arrival."

The Normandy was amongst the first vessels to engage its FTL drive, leading the charge. The viewscreen on the bridge was covered by a blast shield as the light entering it was blueshifted into potentially dangerous wavelengths by the high speeds of the vessel.

Behind the Normandy, the rest of the fleet followed. It would have been an inspiring sight, watching as a vast collection of vessels, ranging from frigates to dreadnoughts and belonging to all members of the Council races, forming the largest fleet the current galaxy had ever seen all jumping together to their mutual destination. Their mutual destiny.

Shepard only hoped it would be enough.

* * *

><p>Kor'O Eldi'Kunas watch the holoviewer in the middle of her command center intently. Long-range scans had revealed that the enemy fleet was on a direct course to this location, having already neutralized all Tau assets on the outer edges of the sept. The ethereal had commanded that the entirety of the remaining military assets the sept controlled be brought to bear at this one battle. The kor'o did not know what the ethereal had planned, but she would not question his wisdom.<p>

"Commander," one of the technicians said, "We have vessels approaching using mass effect FTL."

"Reapers?" she asked, calming her mind and preparing for the imminent battle.

"Negative, commander. Citadel forces."

O'Elkas gave herself a moment to briefly meditate. The Citadel forces were, by Kor'vattra standards, horribly underpowered, but could with massed fire damage the Reapers, if the reports on the Battle of the Citadel were any indication. Still, an effective strategy would have to be devised that would maximise the Reaper casualties, and the kor'o already had a plan.

The Citadel fleet would be deployed in standard formation along the most probable vector of approach the Reapers would take. However, several hundred kilometers behind them would be the Tau fleet. At that range, the Tau would be able to utilize their gravitic launchers for the maximum duration, while the Reapers were tied up with the Citadel fleet. When the Citadel fleet begun to suffer damage, it would fall back as a wave of Tau strike craft begun to strafe the Reaper fleet. The Kor'vattra would then open up with railgun batteries, softening up the enemy before moving in to deliver the killing blow with ion cannons.

It was a sound tactical plan, and had the blessing of the Ethereal. While it did put the alien vessels in danger, it would be no worse than if they faced the Reapers alone. Surely, they would see the need to protect the gravitic launchers of the Tau, as they were the only weapons capable of efficiently dealing with the threat.

Sacrifices would have to be made, especially against a threat as great as this. The Tau acknowledged this, and honored their allies who willingly gave their lives for the Greater Good. From the kroot during the Kronus campaign, to the demiurge who fought Hive Fleet Gorgon. To serve, even unto death, the Greater Good was the highest honor any could aspire to.

* * *

><p>Miranda Lawson could hardly believe what she was seeing. She had further developed her nascent abilities, having realized that they were a new stage in the evolution of biological life. She seemed to have acquired a preternatural ability to perceive the universe around her and arrange it in ways never thought possible.<p>

She had studied the discovery intently on the journey here, to the desolate world of Korridon. She believed she had been the first to recognize it because her mind was one of the most advanced in the galaxy. Humanity, as she had always known, could accomplish anything they put their mind to.

The asari were immensely gifted, having a naturally long life, the ability to smoothly interact with other races, and powerful biotic potential. But they had squandered their potential, sitting idly by while the younger races rose to claim what they might have had. The salarians were always analyzing, concentrating on understanding the minutiae and missing out on the opportunities that presented themselves. The turians were far too rigid, too set in their ways to expand their minds in the ways necessary to stretch their perception beyond what was obvious.

Thus the mantle had fallen on the shoulders of a human. A human who had recognized the patterns well enough to find a higher order to the universe. There were laws, forces, that lay in the void waiting for someone with the intelligence and willpower to harness them. Miranda had only begun to unlock their secrets. Even now she saw them; the way geometric shapes formed and morphed in the stars as her shuttle flew on its course, the alignment of atoms and subatomic particles in a star, and other supposedly chaotic events.

The shuttle emerged from FTL over the planet. Miranda was surprised to find several other vessels in orbit, along with several more landed on the planet's surface. She quickly put the ship into descent; it would be harder to find and therefore target on the surface.

She touched down shortly thereafter. A bit of fancy flying had kept any pursuers off of her tail; specifically, she had quickly calculated a precise route, based on the positions of all other ships currently in system, that would prevent any sensor from tracking her flight path. Such a feat was beyond even EDI's ability to compute, but was child's play with her new-found awareness.

Operative Lawson suited up, deciding against the hardsuit as she did so. Though it offered moderately more protection than her operative jumpsuit, it didn't feel subtle enough for the task at hand. If she was going to complete this mission without attracting the attention of the conspicuously present aliens, brute force would not avail her.

As she stepped out of the shuttle onto the desolate world, Miranda thought about what she had left in order to come here. Right now, according to the extranet feeds, Commander Shepard was preparing to lead a combined-arms fleet of Citadel and Tau forces against the Reaper invasion force. Though a part of her wanted to be at his side as she was fighting the Collectors, Miranda knew she would be of more use here. There was also the matter of the mysteries surrounding the Tau that had yet to be resolved. Shepard was currently fighting the greatest threat to intelligent life the galaxy had ever seen, and he wasn't even certain he could trust his allies.

"It will all be worth it, you'll see," Miranda said, though she did not know to whom. Most likely, it was only to herself.

* * *

><p>"This is incredible!" the turian admiral said as he heard the Tau's plan, conveyed over holo-conference. Shepard, for once, found himself in agreement. "Is that your plan! To use our forces as a shield for your own fleet?"<p>

The Tau admiral did not seem overly fazed by the outburst. If anything, she only looked confused. "I can understand your desire to preserve your own forces, but you must be able to see the greater need to inflict damage upon the enemy. Our weapons can vaporise a Reaper in a single shot; with just a volley we could decimate their fleet."

"If," the salarian fleet commander said, "Your weapons are so powerful, then it would be more logical to divide our forces into combined-arms task groups built around a Tau capital ship, then surround the mass relay in a spherical pattern. This would allow full coverage of all vectors."

"This would also make it easier for the Reapers to divide our forces and eliminate us piecemeal," the kor'o responded. "Even as a unified force, we are maneuverable enough to quickly re-deploy. But if we are separated from one another, our chances diminish significantly."

"It makes sense to keep your cruisers at the aft of the formation; they have the longest range," the asari commander said. "However, your smaller auxiliary craft are powerful enough to save many lives if they were in formation with our vessels."

"The strike craft are needed to cover your withdrawal," the Tau said, "and ensure the Reapers are sufficiently weakened to be dealt with by our capital ships."  
>Admiral Hackett, who had taken command of the Alliance fleet for this mission, spoke up at this time. "With due respect to all present, Commander Shepard is the closest thing we have to an expert on Reaper strategy. He was also present at the Battle of the Citadel, and made the call that resulted in the destruction of Sovereign. I would like to hear his opinion before I make a decision."<p>

Commander Shepard thought about the situation at hand, knowing he had to make the call on which the fate of the battle, and likely the galaxy, hung. On one hand, the Tau were right; the main guns on their forces were likely to be the game-changers needed to win this fight. On the other, any real examination would make it obvious the Tau plan was designed to minimize their casualties at the expense of Citadel forces.

A strategy formed in Shepard's mind. "Here's the plan. We keep the Tau cruisers deployed in the rear of the fleet, but move their frigates up to flank the Citadel capital ships, and deploy their fighter screens among the Citadel frigates. This will divide our firepower more evenly, so a sudden surprise won't throw us completely off-balance." This would decrease overall casualties, but would also likely increase the percentage of Tau casualties. Unfortunate, but all of them were in this together.

O'Elkas conferred with someone out of the holocam's field of view, most likely the Ethereal. "There is... wisdom in your plan. It does carry more flexibility to confront unforeseen strategies the enemy may use."

"Sir." Joker's voice piped into the comm room from the bridge, "Reaper ships detected en route. ETA one hour."

"Then we best make sure we're ready for them. Sirs," Shepard said, saluting the holograms before heading for the bridge. At last, the wait was over.

* * *

><p>Miranda moved swiftly across the rocky terrain towards the crater several kilometers, rapidly closing. She had worked out a pattern of running that would allow her to move at speeds previously unheard of for a human. It was amazing how easily these revelations now came to her.<p>

She mimicked her stealth pattern she had used during her descent, keeping to a precisely figured zig-zag pattern that would make determining where she was all but impossible. As she went, she observed several of the other aliens that were inexplicably heading for the same crater she was.

She knew what the significance of the crater was. It was the nexus; the point in space and time where everything came together in perfect synchronization. Here, she would be able to gain full enlightenment, and every threat to humanity, including but not limited to the Reapers, would be trivialized. This was beyond the scope of the genetic tailoring her father had given her; this accomplishment would be hers and no others.

The aliens, though, could not possibly know the significance of the breakthrough she was on the brink of. She had spotted insane, degenerate krogan, bloated forms in pressure suits she first thought as volus before realizing the suits were in fact quarian in design, and some form of freakish, mutant asari.

She had been able to avoid them, but now that she was preparing to enter the crater proper, a confrontation was unavoidable. She got her first taste of it as she began her climb down; a massive, armor-skinned krogan armed with an axe was waiting for her. "You have no place here, weak human sorceress!" he bellowed as he charged.

Miranda lept to the side, drawing her Phalanx pistol. She let off a couple rounds, but they simply pinged off the creatures hide, not even drawing blood. She prepared to unleash a biotic attack, when something clicked in her mind.

As Miranda went through the physical and mental routine of drawing on the dark energy, she realized that if she focused in such a way, rather than a simple biotic throw, she could use her collected dark energy to induce a ball of plasma.

Deciding to give it a try, Miranda focused on conjuring a ball of mind-fire. She succeeded, and hurled it at her opponent. The results were an astounding success; not only did the superheated sphere of energy strike its target dead-on, it burned a fatal hole clean through the krogan.

She holstered her pistol, doubting she would need it for the remainder of this trip, or ever again for that matter.

Proceeding a bit farther, she found herself in the midst of a vile-looking fog. "Please..." a voice, filtered roughly through a speaker, croaked, "stay here. Don't go forward; you'll just be disappointed. Don't you just want to stop and rest for a while?"

What looked like the putrefying corpse of a quarian shambled out. Miranda wreathed both of her hands in mind-fire. "Now what are you blathering about?" She did not even stop to think about what could have produced this appearance in a quarian.

"Life is just a practice in futility, trying to put off the inevitable and building things that never last." The quarian made a sound that was half coughing, half vomiting. "It is so much easier to just accept the fact that sooner or later we all decay..."

Miranda regarded the thing before her with nothing but contempt. "Life either decays or grows. I for one choose to grow." With that, she erased the offending thing from her sight and from existence with but a thought.

She continued forward, undaunted, and neared the center of the crater. It was only a bit farther; soon, she would have her prize. The universe, however, seemed to conspire to slow her with one last challenge.

She came to a camp of mutant asari. Their head fringes had elongated into fully prehensile tentacles, their normally soothingly blue-hued skin taken on garish patterns, and they garbed themselves in outfits that would have likely been deemed too immodest for even the Eternity club on Omega. They seemed content to simply bask in... something, engaging in a plethora of highly illicit activities. The sheer weight of this mindless hedonism appalled Miranda; they were on a barren rock with a barely breathable atmosphere, and all these fools could do was indulge their lusts and desires in a mindless orgy.

Miranda was content to simply continue on and leave them to suffocate, but it seemed they had other plans. Once they realized she was there, they temporarily put aside their vice of choice to try and drag her in. Literally, as they flung their biotic pull fields.

Thinking quickly, Miranda threw up a biotic field. In the past, even as powerful as she was, it was unlikely as a human could hold her own in a biotic struggle against a group of massed asari. That changed, as Miranda used her new hyper-awareness to erect a latticework of power in her barrier, increasing its effectiveness tenfold.

While Miranda was not an adept, she knew she needed to take these asari down quickly. An application of mind-fire would likely do, but she felt like pushing herself. After all, she went from killing a krogan with it as soon as she invented it, to completely incinerating a being in her second attempt.

A singularity was the most powerful manifestation of biotic might ever witnessed; even very few asari could manage it. Miranda decided she would go beyond a singularity. As she conjured the massive gravitational vortex, trapping all of the aliens in its pull, she modified it further.

She created a wormhole. Shrieking in either fear or pleasure, the asari were dragged into oblivion, ending up who knew or even cared where. Miranda did not spare the issue a second thought.

She had more important things to contemplate.

* * *

><p>In the center of the crater, four beings met. One was a massive, misshapen krogan, carrying primitive, ugly weapons and grisly trophies affixed to his armor. One was at one time a quarian, though now no one who viewed it could be quite sure what lay beneath that mountain of pus. One was an asari in a skin-tight outfit, tentacles protruding from her scalp and lazily swaying about. And one was a human woman, blue fire engulfing her arms and pure arrogance in her eyes.<p>

The krogan spoke first. He addressed then others in nothing short of a shout. "You dare step on this hallowed ground? This is the domain of the blood god! None of you are fit for the air you breathe, much less the space you fill."

"You see the means, krogan, rather than the end," wheezed the quarian. "I am here, not because of strength, but because it was the way things are meant to be. Too long my people tried to lock out the universe rather than embracing the gifts it offers."

The asari laughed at this. "_Gifts?_ You call that gifts? You are lost in a haze of numbness, as isolated from the universe as you were before."

At this point, the human simply enveloped all three in fiery auras. While not immolating them as she expected, the fires did get them to hold still and be silent for a moment. "Enough of this _utter nonsense _for one moment! I couldn't care less about your backwards religions or mindless indulgences. This is _my_ moment, and I _will_ have what I came here for!"

_Indeed,_ a voice echoed in all four of the heads present. _The moment is at hand. It is time for the glory of chaos to be revealed to the galaxy in its full._

All those present, save the human, recognized the voice. "You!" The krogan said. "You were there when I first felt the power! Hide no longer! Show yourself!"

_Indeed, I shall reveal myself. _There was a bright flash, and a whirling miasma of an unnatural shade of pink appeared. Out of it stepped a hulking figure. It wore armor unlike any those present had ever seen before, a heavy plate reminiscent of a medieval knight, yet it moved with such ease that it could only be powered. The suit was painted blood-red, and covered with skulls affixed to the spikes which adorned it. The figure's head was covered by a closed-face grilled helmet, with malevolent red eyes blazing.

"I believe a formal introduction is in order," the figure said. It planted its weapon, a staff with a metal eight-pointed star, shimmering with energy, into the ground. "I am Balak the Illuminator, Dark Apostle of the Word Bearers."


	15. Chapter 15

Nothing like an updated Codex and a bunch of new models (which will be appearing in this chapter) to inspire a new chapter!

Also, I'm aware that ME canon has the turian councilor as Sparatus. You will recall back in Chapter 8, which was written before ME 3 came out, that I named them. I will be sticking with that for the rest of the story.

* * *

><p>Balak eyed the collection of beings before him, each bearing the mark of one of the ruinous powers. There was the reptilian creature whose mind he had felt when he first contacted this realm, a woman who had started out human but what she would become when Tzeentch was finished with her no one could guess, a mountain of pestilence that might have been human or xenos, and another woman. The last one he could not tell if she had been xenos or human due to the mutations Slaanesh had seen fit to place upon her.<p>

All and all, a most unusual combination, but such is the way of Chaos.

The reptile stepped forward. "Illuminator, you call yourself. Illuminate, then, why you see fit to waste our time with these weak creatures. The Blood God calls, and they are unfit for his service!"

Balak did not let his irritation show. He kept his voice calm and even as he said, "Remember who you are talking to, Weyrloc. I know far more about the Blood God than you ever will. I recommend you exercise patience. I will not divulge my knowledge until I deem it proper."

The alien snorts, shaking its head. The Word Bearer despised the fact that he had to deal with the likes of it, but there was much that needed to be done, and his brethren could only enter in limited numbers. Servants such as this would therefore be a necessary evil.

The xenos would, of course, have to prove that they were worthy in service of Chaos. This brought him to the first order of business in this galaxy. "I was informed that one of you possess a servant of the unenlightened powers in this region of space. Bring it forward, I need it."

The slaaneshi brought forth a bound female humanoid in black and red armor. It looked frail, and the flimsy, polished armor it wore gave the impression of transience. It would be worn for a short time then discarded, unlike the weathered yet majestic human-made armor Astartes wore that could and did endure for millennia. With a swift but careful yank, he tore the alien's helmet off, revealing a blue-skinned humanoid with tentacles protruding from her scalp.

She gasped for breath, struggling in the harsh and thin atmosphere of this world. Balak leaned over her, letting the full weight of his brutally intimidating form press down on her. "What is your name, alien, and who do you serve?" It was stated not so much as a question as an order.

The asari struggled to catch her breath. She spoke haltingly, "Valaria T'relek, Citadel Special Tactics and Reconnaissance. Who are you, and what gives you the right to hold a Spectre against her will?"

The Wordbearer spoke. "I am Balak the Illuminator, Dark Apostle of Chaos, champion of the Word Bearers, Master of Serpents, Commander of the Die Profundus. I operate by divine mandate; it is the will of Chaos that brought me here, and it is by that will that I hold you. I have a task that I require you for."

"If you think for one moment," the spectre said between breaths, "that I will help you, you are even more diluted than I thought. I'll have nothing to do with whatever deranged cult this is, except to report you to the Council-"

Balak motions for her to be silenced. "Nephiliam," he said to his companion, a powerful sorcerer who he had long fought beside, "the brand." Nephiliam handed him a palm-sized disc emblazoned with the Star of Chaos. Taking it in his hand, he placed it against the struggling asari's forehead. As she cried out in agony, Balak looked to the skies.

Above him wheeled the stars of an unsuspecting galaxy. Let it prepare, for it would never be the same when he was finished.

* * *

><p>The <em>Normandy<em> swerved and dived, evading the Reaper frigate on its tail while charging its Thanix cannon. The cephalopodic alien ship maneuvered unnaturally, but the unquestionable skill of the _Normandy's_ pilot kept it just out of the enemy's sights. Ruby-red beams of energy lanced forth, coming close but never striking the sleek craft.

"Hold on," Joker shouted as he evaded yet another volley of fire. "I'm going to try some fancy flying." His hands rapidly flew over the orange holographic displays in front of him.

The _Normandy_ spun around on its z-axis, but maintained its forward momentum. Flying backwards, it faced its pursuer. The vessel shuddered as it fired its Thanix cannon directly into the glowing maw of the enemy ship, cracking it into pieces. Secondary explosions blossomed across its hull as it disintegrated, torn apart by g-forces as its mass effect field failed.

Commander Shepard nodded, but could only feel a token sensation of triumph. They had destroyed one enemy ship, but there were far too many remaining.

The start of the battle had went far better than he'd expected. The first wave of Reapers emerged from FTL directly in the sights of the Tau gravatic launchers. The Reapers were obviously unprepared for the great range of the Tau weapons, and were still powering up their kinetic barriers when the first salvo hit. The vanguard of the Reaper fleet was vaporised, and the radiation and wave of superheated gas generated by their destruction obliterated the less powerful of the remaining Reapers, destroying a third of the remaining fleet, and crippling several others. A followup salvo finished off the first wave.

It had been far too easy. Shepard knew that the only reason the first wave had been so easy is that the Reapers had been testing their abilities. Now the Citadel had tipped their hand, and the Reapers would be ready for them.

His fears had proven correct, as the second wave had been four times as large, and came out of FTL at multiple vectors. The Tau were unable to deliver a volley before their barriers were up, and as a result the Reapers sustained significantly less damage.

The Reapers closed, and the Citadel forces opened fire. While their spinal mounted guns, once considered the most powerful in the galaxy, were an order of magnitude weaker than the gravatic launchers of the Tau, they were able to punch through some of the weakened Reaper barriers. The Reapers returned fire, and a seventh of the fleet was destroyed in a single volley.

Realizing they couldn't win at these ranges, the Fleet closed in on the Reapers to engage at point-blank range. At the very least, they would be able to take a few more of the Reapers down with them.

Now, the Normandy sped in between the massive vessels, taking shots of opportunity as they came up. Commander Shepard felt useless; his ship was one of the best in the galaxy, but it didn't pack enough punch to impact this battle. Where he really wanted to be was on the ground, but the battle would have to go a lot worse before it came to that.

A turian dreadnought listed, several fires raging within visible through the cracks in its hull for the brief moment before they were extinguished by vacuum. The ship was obviously dying as one of the larger Reapers descended upon it, arms opening up as though to devour it like the kraken of legend it so resembled. Even so, the turians continued to fight, the weapons never falling silent even as every other light on the ship faded away.

All of a sudden, the dreadnought's maneuvering thrusters fired, causing the vessel to spin on a new axis. As Shepard watched, he realized what the ship was about to do, but so did the Reaper. "Joker, take us in! Target the joint on the outer arm, and then get us the hell out of here!"

The Reaper was raising one of its arms to destroy the dreadnought's engine pod, in an attempt to prevent its own destruction. Fortunately, it could not react in time for the _Normandy_ to make an attack run, successfully destroying said arm. The turian ship was free to commence its final assault.

On the bridge of the dreadnought, General Praxis looked into the waiting maw of the Reaper. For years he had denied its existence, all but calling Shepard a madman in his efforts to protect the galaxy. Whether these events would have turned out differently if he had supported the human spectre couldn't be known to him, but it didn't matter. He had failed as a leader, and now the galaxy was paying for it.

He watched as the bow of his ship lined up with the mass effect core of the sentient warship in front of him. It was time to atone.

"Fire the primary cannon." A super-accelerated round fired from the front of the ship, impacting the Reaper and piercing its heart. As the _Normandy_ sped away, both turian and Reaper were destroyed in the explosion.

* * *

><p>Shas'O Lynu'elan examined his suit's holographic strategic display. With a keen eye, he surveyed the planet-wide battle fought by over a dozen Fire Caste cadres, supported by Citadel and other coalition ground forces. Opposing them was a horde of the biosynthetic abominations known as husks, combined with heretic geth platforms. According to intelligence, the geth had raided pirate and other outlying colonies before launching their attack on the Tau to build their army.<p>

The space battle was not going well. The Reapers had pushed the coalition forces back to the orbit of this world, called Eta Rho VII by the Citadel. A barren rock, it served as the primary base for the Clee'san sept's outer defenses. The coalition had foreseen this; the Reapers had fallen into a trap. The Earth caste had covered the planet with its newest weapon; surface-to-orbit Fusion Cascade missiles. These were currently being used against the foe to devastating effect.

The Reapers had of course responded by launching ground forces to destroy the missile launchers, putting responsibility once more on the Fire Caste to protect the empire. The fixed nature of the launchers had required Lynu'elas to eschew the convention of hit-and-run tactics the Tau were accustomed to. His cadres were entrenched at the launch sites; several were held in reserve ready for rapid deployment into zones where the battle was turning.

Just south of his position, a Reaper Titan was slowly advancing on his position. His cadre's Broadsides kept up a mighty barrage from their railgun rifles, but the Reaper's barriers were holding, and the geth colossi were keeping his larger weapons from being brought to bear.

"Shas'el," he said to his second-in-command, "I am deploying to Sector 124-Q. Take command of the launch site's defenses, and do not fail the Ethereals." The shas'el gave an affirmation signal from her suit, and Lynu'elas rocketed off to the frontline.

The XV104 Riptide Heavy Battlesuit was the pinnacle of Earth Caste technology. Over twice the size of the Crisis model, it was nonetheless highly agile and maneuverable. The suit he currently piloted was equipped with an ion accelerator cannon, smart missiles, and due to the nature of the husk army he was fighting, he had fitted it with twin-link flamers. These quickly incinerated a mass of cannibal husks as he flew over them, giving his fire warriors the ability to take ground and bring their massed pulse rifle barrages to bear against the heavier Reaper units.

The shas'o arrived at the sight where the colossi were pinning his crisis teams down. The geth had improved their designs since the last battle, using improved weapons and plasma-resistant armor. Before they could target him, he fired a blast from his ion accelerator. The geth walker was blown to pieces by the beam of energy.

His suit landed, and he fired another shot from his accelerator. As he scored another kill, the remaining colossi all fired a mass volley of their energy-pulse weapons. Reflexively, he transferred all power to his suit's shield, saving himself. Even as he did so, a smart missile launched from his suit, guided by a nearby pathfinder, and blew the legs out from under the lead colossus.

The crisis suits, given a temporary reprieve from the onslaught, retaliated with fusion blasters and plasma rifles. The colossi were forced to divide their fire, letting Lynu'elan bring his ion accelerator to bear once more. The bolts struck rapidly, leaving a dead colossus wherever they landed.

The crisis suits rescued, the shas'o turned his attention to the Reaper titan. "This is Commander Lynu'elan. All forces, concentrate fire on the Reaper." The entirety of the Tau line opened up on the approaching menace. Its barriers flickered, then were extinguished. The myriad, multicolored streaks of plasma, rail shot, and ion blasts impacted against the hull of the titan, slowly melting through. In response, the Reaper raised its legs, scything ruby-red beams over the defenses.

O'elan took to the skies. Flying in close to the Reaper, he targeted the weak joints of the titan's legs. Ion pulses blew them off one by one, as the Reaper shifted his target from the lines to the commander. The main "eye" lense of the Reaper tracked the Riptide battlesuit, firing a massive beam of deadly red energy. Lynu'elan struggled to avoid the beam, but the high-velocity maneuvering was straining the power supply and structural integrity of his suit. He was forced to put down.

Just as the titan was getting a lock on his position, the shas'o launched a barrage of missiles from the nearby Sky Ray gunships. The warheads impacted along the flanks of the titan, causing its mass effect field to fluctuate. Unable to support its weight on its few remaining legs, the Reaper collapsed on itself. Sparks of crimson energy flashed along the hull as it slowly crumpled under its own weight.

Commander O'elan walked directly in front of the Reaper, peering into its angry eye. The gaze of the dying nightmare machine looked as baleful as the demons of legend its visage invoked in the primitive cave-dwelling populations of ages past. The commander activated his suit's experimental Nova Reactor. All systems surged with excess power, lighting up as though a great storm raged inside the suit, contained only by its shell of technology.

Diverting this new power to his ion accelerator, the commander targeted the lens of the Reaper's main weapon, and the primary power source that lay beyond it. Feeling a sense of calm fury, he depressed the firing stud of his weapon's control, and the storm of righteous fury surged out in a single bolt of lightning. The augmented ion blast pierced the Reaper's eye, and burned all the way through to its core. The resulting blast wave shook everything to nearly half the planet's distance away. Fire warriors hunkered down in their bunkers, battlesuits gripped the ground, and husks were blown away like chaff in the wind. At ground zero, O'elan held firm as the turbulence shook his suit nearly to the point of collapse, but it held.

Grim resolve filling him, he looked over the smoking crater that was his former enemy. Beyond it, three more Reaper titans approached. He raised his suit's fist in defiance and challenge.


End file.
